We wanted the playoffs to be competitive. But this is not what we meant.
We didn’t mean injuries to two of the best point guards in the West. First Stephen Curry was hurt with a sprained right MCL which will keep him sidelined for at least two weeks.
But last night’s blow was bigger. The Los Angeles Clippers lost to the Portland Trail Blazers, tying the series at 2-2. But that wasn’t even close to the biggest loss for the Clippers. All-Star Chris Paul broke his right hand (no, he didn’t punch the trainer) and will probably miss the rest of the playoffs.
Crazy how things went from ‘Can the Clippers beat the Warriors to get to the Western Conference Finals?’ to ‘I don’t think the Clippers can beat the Blazers without Paul.’
Doc Rivers will have to get to work and motivate his son, Austin, who will probably be playing 30 minutes a night for the rest of the playoffs. He was 1-for-7 last night, so he’s off to a great start.
As for the Blazers, Damian Lillard wasn’t very good (4-for-15), but Al-Farouq Aminu was on fire, finishing with 30 points, 18 from the 3-point line.
It’s suddenly starting to look like this team could challenge the Warriors in the second round. But it wasn’t supposed to happen like this.
Things not smart to say before playing against Russell Westbrook:
1.) He’s ugly.
2.) He smells funny.
3.) He’s not a superstar.
Mark Cuban, not your brightest move. Westbrook finished with 36 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. Some would say superstar numbers. Cuban isn’t one of them.
The Thunder advanced to the second round to play the San Antonio Spurs.
It looks like the West is wide open right now with two major injuries. The Spurs are a better team than the Thunder, I think. But Oklahoma State was 2-2 against San Antonio this season and if you have Westbrook and Kevin Durant, you always have a chance.
Please, give us a seven-game series.
