(Credit: Courtesy of the LA Clippers)
It doesn’t get any better than this – a matchup of two basketball giants in the first round of the playoff’s in the Western Conference: The Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard and the Sun’s Kevin Durant. The matchup should provide some of the best basketball, as both players and their teams are hungry for a championship run.
The Clippers (44-38) clinched the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference after beating the Suns (45-37) on Sunday, 119-114. They will meet again in the first round of the playoffs on April 16. Several storylines are in store for us – we have Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, who were once teammates for eight years when both played for the Oklahoma City Thunder and then there is Chris Paul, who led the Clippers from 2011-2017.
The Suns locked in the No. 4 seed before Sunday’s game, resulting in their starters getting rest and avoiding the chances of injuries occurring before the first round. Despite the absence of the Sun’s big guns – Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, T.J. Warren, and Chris Paul- the Clippers gave tremendous efforts to secure the much-needed win.
(Credit: Courtesy of the LA Clippers)
“It took all we had,” Kawhi Leonard said on reaching the playoffs on the final day of the regular season. “Guys in and out all season, guys focusing up towards the end of the year, and we were able to get some wins, but it’s not over yet.
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“It feels good. We got a challenge ahead of us. We gotta be prepared and ready to go because they got a great team over there.”
Sunday’s season finale between the two teams saw Norman Powell lead the Clippers in scoring with 29 points, Russell Westbrook – with 25 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, and one steal, and Kawhi Leonard finished with 25 points,15 rebounds, and six assists.
For the Suns, Saben Lee scored 25 points, Jock Landale 15 points, Darius Bazley 16 points, and Landry Shamet 14 points.
(Credit: Courtesy of the LA Clippers)
As the season ended, fireworks erupted between Clipper teammates Bones Hyland and Mason Plumlee at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The teammates, separated by Norman Powell and according to head coach Ty Lue:
“If you ain’t getting it right, fight then,” Lue said. “After that, we took off and played better. Maybe we should do it more often. They worked it out. Everything is good.”
Plumlee finished the game with nine points, four rebounds, and three assists, while Hyland added 11 points and five rebounds.
The Clippers will face the Suns without Paul George on Sunday, April 16. The team has confirmed that he will not play in Game 1 of the first round with the Suns.
