In round two, the Clippers were matched up with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and after four games the series was tied at 2-2, setting up a pivotal Game 5 on the road for the Clippers.
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The Los Angeles Clippers didn’t just lose, 98-84, in Game 4 of their first round series with the Portland Trail Blazers Monday night. Crawford exploded for 30 points back on April. 8 when the Clippers rested most of their players against the Jazz, so expect plenty of scoring chances the rest of the way.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) Chris Paul broke a bone in his right hand midway through the third quarter and left the Clippers’ Game 4 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
Aminu made 11 of 20 shots from the field, including six of 10 from three-point range.
Hours after Stephen Curry was officially diagnosed with a sprained MCL, the Clippers’ Chris Paul left the game and has reportedly been diagnosed with a broken hand.
Paul led players with 16 points when he left the game.
There’s no debate about the type of talent Blake Griffin brings to the table, but when it comes to the true leader of the Clippers – Paul is clearly the main favorite. The Clippers took a huge hit when the Paul injury happened and the team had a very hard time finding momentum in the fourth quarter.
Lillard’s fadeway gave Portland an 86-85 lead with 2:36 to go. Maurice Harkless added a layup.
For a series that has been light on the shoving, the taunting, the emotion, Portland finally arrived in the series, staving off a Clippers comeback for a 96-88 win. Portland C Mason Plumlee had 21 rebounds and nine assists in Game 3, becoming the first National Basketball Association player with at least 20 boards and nine assists in a playoff game since Minnesota’s Kevin Garnett in April 2004.
Instead of facing the previous or future champions, the Clippers are facing a young upstart team in the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Clippers also blew a 3-1 lead last season against Houston in the Western Conference semifinals.
The Blazers had made just 37 percent of their shots in the first two games after making 45 percent in the regular season. Considering he shot just 43 percent this season and has shot 42.1 percent over his seven-year career, that’s understandable. McCollum and Damian Lillard, determined to affect the game from the opening tip, combined to score 59 points. DeAndre Jordan has had a fantastic series, and the one thing that Blake has done exceptionally well is draw fouls, forcing Portland to adjust their front-court rotation. That crunch-time dominance helped the Blazers avoid what would have been a devastating three-game hole. Portland led 49-40 at the half. The third metacarpal connects the finger to the wrist, and it’s on Paul’s shooting hand.
Griffin was asked post-game if he thinks he’ll play Wednesday.
Clippers: J.J. Redick started despite a bruised heel that kept him out of practice on Friday.
He became the first player with 19 or more rebounds and eight or more assists in a playoff game since LeBron James in 2010.
While celebrating their win, the Blazers were also mindful of the hit that the Clippers had taken.
“It’s not easy dealing with injuries, especially this time of the year, so as his teammates we’ll always have his back and we’ll go from there”.
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“Yeah, I talked to him”, Griffin said.
