Swanson: Clippers have makings of great team – if only they add Kawhi Leonard

22/04/2024 03:46

LOS ANGELES — You've got to hand it to 'em. The Clippers have built a championship roster.*

*with Kawhi Leonard.

Sunday afternoon's 109-97 wire-to-wire victory over the fifth-seeded Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series served to remind anyone watching how good the fourth-seeded Clippers are.

How big, how experienced, how talented, how deep, how well-coached, how formidable in their roles this cast can be.

How great they'd be with their prized piece to complete the puzzle.

Could be?

Will be?

There are rumblings that Leonard's return from right knee inflammation is imminent, that it could come as soon as Tuesday night – at least if what Fox Sports' Skip Bayless is hearing about the two-time NBA Finals MVP is true.

As I reported on Friday's Undisputed, Kawhi will not play today but does plan to play in Tuesday's Game 2.

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 21, 2024

But to echo this past week's comments from Lawrence Frank, the Clippers' team president, we can't know until we know, until we see him on the court in his No. 2 uniform with our own eyes: "One thing I would share with you is that inflammation is unpredictable."

So whether you're a cautious optimist or an aggressive pessimist, whether you look at "questionable" on the Clippers' injury report and feel your heart filled with doubt or with hope, you can't really, truly know Leonard's status until you know Leonard's status.

Ever.

Not with that jerky surgically repaired knee and its habit of acting up at the worst possible moments, the uncooperative nature of this largest joint in a person's body – and the Clippers' playoff push.

In the meantime, Paul George and a capable Clippers contingent have proved before they can advance in the playoffs without Leonard. They beat the top-seeded Utah Jazz in 2021 after Leonard went out with what turned out to be a torn anterior cruciate ligament and then pushed the Phoenix Suns to six games in the Western Conference finals.

Shoot, last year, Russell Westbrook and the Clippers made the Suns have to work to beat them without either George or Leonard in the first round.

And Sunday's performance told us that defeating Dallas without Leonard might not prove to all that daunting a task after all. Certainly not impossible.

The Clippers this season added James Harden to their collection of future Hall of Famers, trading away their surplus of wings for a guy who chipped in in a big way – and in his typical Game 1 fashion – on Sunday, with 28 points and eight assists (and just one turnover).

They have Coach Tyronn Lue, the schemer, who is in his happy place in the playoffs. On Sunday, his great idea was to have the Clippers lean into their superior length early, and then to take their foot off the gas on defense late, insofar as they allowed Kyrie Irving (31 points) to cook from 2-point range but not 3-point land. Lue smiled postgame, thinking about additional tinkering he'll get to do ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena.

That have an underrated Ivica Zubac, the 7-foot center who, a couple of seasons after having been benched as Lue's big adjustment against the Mavs, on Sunday took a team-high 17 shots en route to a career-playoff-high 20 points. He's an honest fellow, and so he admitted that, yes, he's keen to show something to those people whose hearts are filled with doubt.

"A lot of people write us off," he said. "We're not really worried about those people, but at the same time, you know, your competitive spirit, you want to prove everyone wrong and we know who we got in the locker room. We know what we're capable of … we've got some pretty good players and we're always going to have a chance to win a game."

But to win a series against the Denver Nuggets? The Boston Celtics? Maybe the Minnesota Timberwolves?

To vanquish such championship-caliber foes, the Clippers are going to need what the T-shirts they wore on the bench Sunday called for: "All Hands."

Especially the Klaw's claws.

But in the meantime, his teammates are game to hold the door as long as they can.

"We have high expectations for one another," said George, who fought for 22 points and missed eight of his 12 3-point attempts while his teammates covered for him for much of the game.

"We do a great job of staying together," he added. "Of sticking together and holding it down until 2 comes back."

Don't rush, 2. But come back soon.

A could-be championship-caliber crew is waiting for you; a talented, tough bunch, but they can only hold the door so long.