LOS ANGELES — The march to the playoffs continues and the Clippers are fully aware they cannot afford any missteps.
Even so, there were slip-ups Tuesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder and they even stumbled in stretches, which eventually cost them the game on a night that might have come with a far more significant cost.
Clippers star Paul George appeared to hurt his right knee in the fourth quarter of the Clippers’ 101-100 loss, and losing the All-Star wing for any extended length of time could cost the team its championship aspirations.
George collapsed to the floor under the OKC basket with 4:38 left, grabbing his right knee, after colliding with Thunder guard Lugeuntz Dort. After laying face down for several moments, George was helped off the court and headed to the locker room with a possible hyperextended knee, according to Bally Sports SoCal. Supported by staff on either side, George did not appear to put any weight on his right leg.
“I went up for the rebound, kind of hit his leg,” Dort said. “I didn’t do it on purpose, definitely an accident.”
There was no immediate update on George after the game.
“I saw it, but he’s still being evaluated,” Coach Tyronn Lue said, adding that he had not yet talked to George.
George was driven out of the arena on a cart with his right leg fully extended, leaving behind a team to contemplate what lies ahead.
Forward Nico Batum also had not talked to George, but he said the Clippers (38-35) need to move forward regardless.
“You got to play basketball when you go out there, you know, got to go out there with the guys you have,” Batum said. “… play on.”
Clippers star Kawhi Leonard – who didn’t see the play and said he initially thought George was hit in the face – took the same view. The Clippers have just nine games left before the postseason and could go into the playoffs without one of their key players for a second year in a row. Leonard missed the entire 2021-22 season, including the two play-in games after knee surgery.
”Next man up,” Leonard said. “I mean, we’ll see. We got a group of guys that still want to win, that like to play basketball, so we’ll see what happens.”
Before leaving, George had 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists, including a highlight-reel dunk in the third quarter when he rotated 360 degrees before slamming the ball through the rim and bringing the Crypto.com Arena crowd to its feet.
Without him, the Clippers couldn’t stop Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder down the stretch. The game was tied 91-all when George went down and Leonard scored before the Thunder ran off six points in a row to take a 97-93 lead.
Batum hit a jumper to pull the Clippers within 101-100. The Clippers lost a coach’s challenge of an out-of-bounds call with 30 seconds left. The Thunder inbounded but missed a shot and Leonard grabbed the rebound. He dribbled down the final seconds but was hounded by Thunder defenders and failed to get a shot off before the buzzer sounded.
“They did a great job. It started with Dort and then they shrunk the floor,” said Leonard, who led the Clippers with 21 points, six rebounds and five assists. “It’s another explanation (example) of it’s not (being able to) open up the floor for one another, not able to get into actions. But I’ll take ownership of it. Definitely should have got a shot off.”
Lue said the Clippers didn’t attack early enough on the final play, calling it a “learning experience for us.”
“I just didn’t think we played right the whole night offensively,” he added. “We played too slow, we didn’t share the basketball the right way. I know our coaches said we got some open threes we didn’t make but just the flow of the game was nasty because we didn’t play the right way and we played slow, we didn’t move the basketball, we didn’t get to the second side.
“When we don’t play a good brand of basketball, these are the results you get.”
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault ran 10 players in and out of the lineup, which kept the Clippers in a perpetual state of the unknown. They couldn’t focus on any one player when 10 of them were hitting jumpers and free throws.
“Coach D’s done a great job with just putting guys in the right position,” Lue said, “and they bought into it and they’re playing really good basketball right now.”
Gilgeous-Alexander, who is averaging 31.8 points this season, is a large reason why the Thunder have a shot at a playoff spot. He again led the Thunder with 31 points, seven rebounds and four assists against his former team. Jalen Williams added 20 and two other players scored in double figures.
The Thunder (36-36) have played their way back into playoff contention, winning seven of their past nine games and beating other playoff teams in the process.
The Clippers overcame a bizarre officiating sequence late in the second quarter. Leonard drove in for a layup and, believing he was fouled on the play, argued when the referee didn’t call it. He was slapped with a technical foul.
Terance Mann, who was trailing on the play, took exception to the non-call and also argued with the official, earning a technical. He then raised his arms in disgust and was hit with a second technical and the automatic ejection that comes with it.
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Mann had been active on offense and defense, posting eight points, three rebounds and one steal in 11 minutes.
Crew chief Curtis Blair told a pool reporter that Leonard aggressively clapped at the official. He said Mann pointed aggressively at the official, then used profanity toward the official, earning the two technical fouls and the ejection.
The Clippers started the game doing nearly everything right, resulting in a 17-4 run in the first five minutes. The next seven minutes weren’t good. And the following 12 weren’t any better on a night when they finished 6 for 31 from 3-point range and 12 for 21 from the free-throw line.
The Thunder capitalized on several communication breakdowns by the Clippers on offense and defense to chip away at the score until they moved ahead 23-22 after the first quarter. The Clippers went 0 for 11 from the field during the Thunder’s run.
The team stayed close despite the Clippers’ inability to land 3-pointers. They were just 2 for 15 from behind the arc in the first half and trailed 56-51.