
(Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
It’s a testament to these Clippers that, for as much of a slog as this series has become, they’ve still found ways to succeed. Since Blake Griffin’s injury and Gobert’s return, Utah has wrested control over how these games are going to be played–slow, ugly, and with a lot of flailing. This mostly plays to the Jazz’s favor, they’re the slowest team in the league and as we’ve seen from the late game heroics of one Isolation Johnson, they know how to squeeze out points at the very end of that shot clock. On the other end they make you work, every open look feels like a fleeting miracle.
And yet, as the Clippers have struggled to push the pace in the wake of Griffin’s injury, they’ve rediscovered how devastating a player Chris Paul can be when the game grinds to a halt. Paul, 29 points on 10 for 20 with 8 assists, asserted his will on a Jazz team that seemed content to switch on every screen and roll involving him–much to Joe Ingles repeated chagrin.
Rivers, Crawford, and Mbah a Moute combined for a much needed 38 points on 50 percent shooting and Jordan, after a particularly brutal stretch in the third quarter where he turned the ball over five times in increasingly bewildering fashion, ended up besting Gobert with 13 points and 18 rebounds. The Jazz, meanwhile, got nothing from previous Clipper killers Rodney Hood, Joe Ingles and Joe Johnson who went a combined 5 for 23 from the field, although many of these shots were as open as they were in Game 5.
This, in fact, may have been the biggest difference in the game for the Jazz. Utah had almost the same number of uncontested field goal attempts in game 5 (32) as they did in game 6 (33) but only made 39 percent of them as opposed to the 53 percent they shot in game 5. This would be a worrying trend for the Clippers if the two teams were forced to play each other another 82 times some kind of hellish basketball purgatory, but as the Jazz learned tonight trends matter little when you’re this late in a series.
That said, Utah still had a chance. The game felt won after another Chris Paul drive that victimized Ingles and led to an open Austin Rivers three pointer that put the Clips up 10 with a minute and change to go in the fourth. But what followed was an almost predictable set of blunders on the part of the Clippers that gave Utah a chance to tie the game with a three with three seconds to go. Joe Johnson, as he had not managed to do up till this point in the series, somehow missed.
It wasn’t pretty, entertaining, or even all that encouraging, but it was very Clippers. As it should be.
Game 7 here we go.
what time did the jazz and celtics game end on 04/28/17?
You know you have a bad fan base when the team has to remind fans to show up on time and be loud.
You see it across social media. You see the lack of ratings. You see the lack of merchandise. You hear it at home games. The Clippers have the most pathetic fan base in the NBA.
This is my 19th year being a fan. The “fans” disappoint me more than the team. They’re superficial. They lack discernment. They lack intelligence. It must be an LA thing.
Wow, there’s so much excitement in ClipperNation, huh?
Where’s PR Tim? Do the 2017 Clippers no longer remind him of the 1979 Indiana State team?
Where are all the fans who want to watch this shit until the year 2022?
Less than 2 hours until Game 7 and there are 4 comments on ClipperBlog.
There are 5 comments on ClipsNation.
What an incredible fan base.
Wes Johnson has played 11 minutes in the playoffs.
Good use of the Mid-Level, fellas.
Look at all those empty seats in the 1st quarter of a Game 7.
What a pathetic fan base.
Staples Center sounds like it’s a Sunday afternoon game in January.
The only time a Clipper crowd gets loud is when opposing fans are making noise.
And that was with the 1st quarter ending in a tie.
What a terrible fan base. No home-court advantage whatsoever.
If the fans don’t care why should Chris or Blake care if they leave?
Chris Paul flails his body and throws up a 1 handed shot from half-court and he bitches at the refs like he deserves a call.
That’s why people hate you and hate the Clippers, Chris.
And there’s Chris Paul’s lower body injury in the 1st round of the playoffs.
And the circle is complete.
If you had Game 7 for Chris Paul’s annual playoff injury you win.
I bet on a Game 3 injury but Chris seems to like Game 7’s at home to limp through.
I see plenty of bitching about Paul Pierce on social media but not seeing a single word about the “Point God” not showing up for a Game 7 at home.
Funny how that works. Blame the 39 year old and not the “Point God” in his prime.
Midway through the 4th quarter of a Game 7 at home and Chris Paul has 13 points and 6 assists on 6-16 shooting.
But if Chris makes a couple meaningless jumpers or layups or the game gets close he’ll be the “Point God” again.
The 1st quarter ended in a tie.
The “Point God” then went 2-12 the rest of the game.
The “Point God” finished with 13 and 9 on 6-19 shooting.
The “Point God” is now 34-46 in his playoff career.
Chris Paul was the 3rd best Clipper in a Game 7 at home.
DeAndre Jordan and Jamal Crawford were better than Chris today.
Chris Paul took 1 free throw and missed it.
He’s the “Point God” though, he doesn’t need to get into the paint and draw fouls.
So bounced in the 1st round. Who would have predicted that? Lets see…
At least A. Rivers has turned into a good player.
Off-season predictions:
CP3 is gone
Doc goes to Orlando
BG signs with the Clippers long term
Doc just said that the fans were “phenomenal” today.
That might be the dumbest thing Doc has ever said. That was the worst Game 7 crowd I’ve ever heard. In any sport.
The fans didn’t show up. Just like the team.
Same shit for 6 straight years. Who wants to watch this until 2022?
When ever someone talks great about the fans, they're usually leaving.
Are you at a Renaissance Fair with that font?
Doc is trying to be supportive so he doesn’t get blamed for this.
I don’t know if Steve Ballmer has balls. I hear he has a son but I don’t know if he’s adopted or not. We’ll find out this Summer.
dunno what’s up with this font, I didn’t change anything
When in doubt blame a Russian.
Sunday daytime is a bad time for a game if you want fan involvement, night games are the best.
Blake Griffin didn’t show up to the arena.
Chris Paul didn’t show up for the final 3 quarters.
Seems about right. That’s the way it should end.
The Clipper organization wants us to believe that Blake “had” to visit a doctor on the East Coast.
I guess Blake’s insurance company wouldn’t let him visit any other time, right?
It’s not like doctors move around appointments to accommodate professional athletes or anything. Nope. Never. He “had” to be there.
The blame is on two people. Part of it is on Rivers for putting together such a poor supporting cast around Paul and Griffin. The other part of it is on Ballmer for letting Rivers do it.
When the team, all season long not just in the playoffs, starts a small forward who makes $2 million a year, that’s a big tip off something is wrong. Mbah a Moute is a good defensive player, and that’s what a good defensive player makes, because being a good defensive player is not very important and there’s plenty of them around to be signed. What’s important is a small forward who can score on his own. After Griffin went out, the Clippers had no frontline player at all who could score on his own. Huge mistake.
Rivers was all about friends and family. He was one bad judgment move after another. He was a disaster for the Clippers. I’ve been saying that for three years (after watching his first year bungles) and now everybody should be able to see it. Hopefully Ballmer finally will get some sense and get rid of him.
I don’t at all blame Paul for the loss. He ran out of gas. He’s been carrying the team the entire series, and he had done a remarkable job of doing that up until today. In the fourth quarter especially he just didn’t have anything left and it showed. All players have off games. Lebron James has numerous off games. But in the overall, Chris Paul had a very good series and an excellent season and six super years with the Clippers. Too bad the Clippers didn’t take better advantage of those six years. River is the main culprit in that failure.
Ballmer can’t come in as a basketball outsider and fire Doc Rivers who personally everyone likes including CP3 who was the one that got him here. That’s won’t be a good look for him. Now he has plenty of reason to hire someone as a GM, or tell him to go to Orlando.
Yes, I agree with that, and that may well be what happens. The problem is Rivers as GM not as coach. But that problem at GM has been a very serious one.
I still don’t see Clipper fans talking about Chris Paul’s game today.
The “Point God” once again suffered an injury during the 1st round of the playoffs.
And the “Point God” went for 13 and 9 on 6-19 shooting in a Game 7 at home.
48 years and this franchise still hasn’t made a Conference Finals.
And Knicks fans act like their franchise hasn’t won 2 championships. Shit, the Knicks made the Finals twice in the last 22 years.
The Clippers are 24-33 in the playoffs during the Chris Paul era.
For 6 years the Clippers had a 1st ballot hall of famer, a 5x All-Star who finished 3rd in MVP voting, and a 1st team All-NBA Center who started on an Olympic gold medal team.
And they finished 9 games under .500 in the playoffs. That’s failure.
Keep reading my comment above if you think the Clippers should keep this core together.
24-33.
The only stat that matters.
All of them in the prime of their careers.