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The Los Angeles Clippers have had a tough year. Still, considering the circumstance, their 39-40 record does not look awful. They were without the services of Kawhi Leonard for the entire campaign, while Paul George missed most of the year due to elbow injuries. Now, they enter the final stretch of three games with a secured 8th spot in the Western Conference. Before LA participate in the play-in, they need to close their season out strong. The Clippers will need their entire roster to perform, but one player will need to lead them.
Paul George
Obviously, that would be Paul George. Other players on the roster have carried their weight across the year, but now, it is PG13's time to really show the Clippers fans what they were missing for most of the season. Leonard will likely not come back until at least the playoffs, even though his injury situation has had a positive update in January. As things stand right now, it will be George leading them in the last three games and likely the play-in tournament. They will have a tough job as a collective, but George will have the toughest, trying to regain some momentum before he and the Clippers fight hard to return to the championship picture.
As said above, it was a tough year for the Clippers overall. George only played 29 games, Leonard missed a ton of time, and they had other injuries throughout the year. Thankfully for them, the Los Angeles Lakers were so poor that all the attention went to them, so the Clippers could be quietly building up. The positive for this season is that they are still a tough, grind-it-out kind of team. That identity was synonymous with the Clippers in the 2018-19 season when the team did not have Leonard or George, but still made the postseason and stole two games from the Golden State Warriors. That identity is critical to a team that has two injury-prone stars and being able to keep it, even though guys like Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams are not there anymore, is very important.
Thus, when Paul George returned to the lineup, he had a capable group of guys that were able to hold the Clippers above water while he was gone. In the three games since he returned, there were some good and bad signs for the Clippers. He managed to hit the ground running, scoring 34 points and dishing out six assists in a comeback win versus the Utah Jazz. However, he then had two poor shooting games, managing to score just 22 and 15 points on 35% and 33% shooting from the field against the Bulls and the Pelicans, respectively. Winning two out of your three games back is good, but it is clear that George still has rust.
Due to that rust, it must be great for the Clippers to expect two relatively easy opponents in their last three games of the season. Their remaining schedule will start with them hosting the Phoenix Suns, the best team in the NBA. However, the Clippers will then host the Sacramento Kings and the Oklahoma City Thunder, two teams that have lost all chances to make any significant mark this season in the NBA. Thus, aside from the Suns game, Paul George should look at the last two games as grounds to really pop off and regain a ton of his confidence. Even the Suns game could be a great opportunity for George to face a tough opponent and really get tested. Of course, he already played against the Bulls and the Jazz, but the Suns are just on a different level.
Whatever the result in the last three games may be, the Clippers and Paul George need to show the world they are still there. LA is slowly becoming the better team in Los Angeles and while this season has been full of adversity, they can fight through it and become a real threat in the Western Conference. The downside is the squad still needs to go through the play-in tournament. Even if the Clips do, their first playoffs opponent will be either the Suns or the Grizzlies, meaning that even if Leonard comes back, it will be a tall hill to climb for the Clippers.
That should not stop them from closing the season strong. If they want to do that, the Clippers must rally behind their returning superstar in Paul George, and really send a message to all the teams in the West that, even if they will be eliminated in the first round, Los Angelels will not be an easy team. Then, with this valuable experience behind them, the Clippers would be a true contender next year, with everyone coming back healthy and ready to play.
