Clippers survive last-second scare to edge Kings, move to brink of playoff berth
They’ve played 81 games and won 49 and yet the Clippers‘ postseason place won’t be decided until their regular-season finale Sunday at Golden State. The Clippers have the eighth-best record in the NBA and are tied for fourth in the uber-tough Western Conference.
So what comes next for the Clippers is quite straightforward.
Beat the Warriors and the Clippers are in the playoffs. Lose and they’re in the play-in.
“High stakes, huh?” Clippers center Ivica Zubac said late Friday night while soaking his sprained right ankle in a bucket of ice because it became swollen after Wednesday night’s game against Houston.
Read more:Ivica Zubac delivers first triple-double as playoff-focused Clippers beat Rockets
The Clippers are the fifth seed in the Western Conference following Friday night’s 101-100 win over the Kings at Golden 1 Center.
But because so many tiebreakers are not in the Clippers’ favor, they must win their eighth consecutive game Sunday to secure a playoff spot.
The Clippers and the Nuggets have identical 49-32 records and split the season-series 2-2, Denver is the fourth seed because it has the tiebreaker of a better conference record at 31-20 compared to L.A.’s 28-23.
If the Clippers lose to the Warriors and the Nuggets beat Houston and the Timberwolves beat the Jazz, L.A. would fall to seventh in the West and meet Memphis in a play-in game Tuesday night at Intuit Dome.
“Imagine if we didn’t win all these games,” said Zubac, who had 17 points and 11 rebounds against the Kings. “We got a lot of wins but other teams did too. So, one game, playoffs or play-in. So, it’s going to be fun.”
Basically, a Clippers loss and wins by the Warriors and Timberwolves would leave all three teams with the same records.
The Timberwolves would become the fifth seed and the Warriors would be the sixth seed and the Clippers seventh.
The main tiebreaker that put the Clippers in this position was going 0-3 against the Timberwolves.
“Win 49 games and if you don’t win Sunday, you got a chance to be seventh,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “So, we just got to keep scrapping, keep competing. One game at a time. It is what it is. But you didn’t ever think you’d win 49 games and still could be in the play-in. So, it is what it is.”
The Clippers stayed in contention behind 28 points from Kawhi Leonard and James Harden’s triple-double of 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Norman Powell had 16 points as the Clippers benefited from a stellar defense to just hold off the Kings.
They just have to do it again against the Warriors at Chase Center in San Francisco.
“The outcome is going to tell what happens,” Leonard said. “So, just go out and play. That’s all you can do — play and have fun.”
The Clippers have beaten the Warriors three times this season. But Golden State is a different team from what the Clippers last faced.
Golden State is 23-7 since adding Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline.
“That’s a good team over there,” Zubac said. “They’ve been playing well. … They got a lot of experience, a lot of playoff games together. So, got to be locked in, got to be the team we’ve been all year on the defensive end. It’s going to be tough. But I think we’re in a good spot. So it’s going to be fun.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
DeMar DeRozan missed a shot at the final buzzer as the Clippers got 28 points from Kawhi Leonard to beat the Sacramento Kings 101-100.
