Blake Griffin, Chris Paul Expected To Miss Rest Of The NBA Playoffs
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
With the news of reigning NBA MVP Stephen Curry going down with a knee injury spreading like wildfire across the NBA recently, chances of a new NBA champion being crowned at season’s end became a distinct possibility. The Golden State Warriors are still a serious threat to win it all and Curry’s injury may not be devastating, but it has altered expectations.
Shortly after the news broke of Curry set to miss the next two weeks with a sprained MCL, the Los Angeles Clippers suffered severe blows to their postseason hopes. Superstars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin went down with injuries against the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series.
According to Arash Markazi of ESPN, the Clippers’ worst fears came to fruition on Tuesday with Griffin ruled out for the rest of the season and Paul out indefinitely:
Blake Griffin will miss the remainder of the postseason and Chris Paul will be out indefinitely, the Los Angeles Clippers announced Tuesday.
Griffin had been bothered by a quadriceps injury throughout the majority of the regular season, and his injury woes have carried over into the playoffs, via ESPN:
Griffin aggravated a left quadriceps injury in Game 4 of the team’s first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night. An MRI revealed no further structural damage, and the team said he’ll be ready for the start of training camp.
As for Paul, surgery is required to repair the fracture in his shooting hand, via ESPN:
Team sources indicated the recovery time for Paul is four to six weeks, meaning the Clippers would have to advance to the conference finals or NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history for him to return this postseason.
With Griffin officially ruled out for the rest of the postseason and Paul likely out as well unless the Clippers can advance without him, the Clippers’ chances of winning it all or even getting past the Blazers seems bleak, to say the least.
Los Angeles was already a team not expected to go beyond the second round with the matchup with the Warriors likely on the horizon, but getting the best of the Blazers without Paul and Griffin is a stretch.
