Five keys to the Clippers’ first-round playoff series against Portland

The Clippers won their season series with the Portland Trail Blazers, 3-1, a ledger that doesn’t come close to conveying the drama that unfolded between the teams. There was a brouhaha involving a player left off the active list (Portland’s C.J. McCollum) and a buzzer-beater involving one of the NBA’s best shooters (the Clippers’ J.J. Redick). And that doesn’t even count the Clippers’ 35-point comeback over the Trail Blazers in the preseason.

Here are five keys to their first-round playoff series, which starts Sunday night at Staples Center:

1. Portland must win the battle of the backcourts decisively to have any chance. The Trail Blazers will be facing an uphill climb in most of the other matchups, with Blake Griffin versus Noah Vonleh and DeAndre Jordan versus Mason Plumlee presenting huge advantages in the Clippers’ favor. Lillard has struggled against the Clippers, who have trapped him amid a variety of coverages. They’ve largely worked. “I’ve guarded him a lot, so just being physical with him” has been effective,” Clippers guard Austin Rivers said. “But, the thing is, none of that matters anymore. It’s a new series so we’re going to take that with a grain of salt and just move forward. They go as he goes. If he doesn’t play well, they don’t win.”

2. C.J. McCollum will presumably be active and might be agitated. The controversy about whether Clippers Coach Doc Rivers had a say in whether McCollum could play after the Trail Blazers’ inadvertently left their second-leading scorer off their active list during a game in January should have never started because it was a non-issue; Rivers had no input on the matter. But reports from the Portland media suggested otherwise, and McCollum implied that Rivers was responsible for his not playing and even threw his son Austin into the fray. “It’s unfortunate that that’s how it had to go down,” McCollum told reporters, “But if it was my son, I would probably protect him too.” Austin Rivers shrugged off the notion that McCollum could come into the series with an edge. “I don’t give a ... what he thinks, quite frankly, whether he’s pissed off, it doesn’t affect me, Chris [Paul], J.J. or anybody,” Rivers said. “He’s a good player. I think he’s going to be ready to go because it’s the playoffs and so are we.”

3. The Clippers’ superior playoff experience could make a difference. The discrepancy is staggering. The Clippers have a combined 568 games of playoff experience. The Trail Blazers? 91. That’s a little more than half of the 158 playoff games Clippers veteran Paul Pierce has played in. The numbers are nearly as lopsided when it comes to playoff experience with their current teams. The Clippers dominate that category as well, 204-41. Is it a big advantage or much ado about nothing? “I’ve been in series where we’ve been the younger team and won,” Doc Rivers said. “I think that is so overrated, honestly. McCollum last year was one of the best players last year in the playoffs and he was a rookie. But if it does come in handy, I’m all for it. I’ll take it for sure. Paul’s had 400 of those, so it’s a little slanted.”

4. The fact that the Clippers won’t have to squeeze as many minutes out of their starters as they did last season should help. Doc Rivers was reluctant to go deep into his bench last season in the playoffs but could have the opposite problem this time around, with more capable players than he can use in situations when rotations naturally tighten. “There are nights where you shorten your rotation, there will be nights where you can play 10 guys and they come in and play well,” Rivers said. “So I think that’s the good thing. You can give that group a try and feel comfortable with that. If they don’t go well, you can always go back to your starters.”

5. Both teams should be largely at full strength. Redick is dealing with a bruised heel, and Portland’s Meyers Leonard is out for the playoffs with a dislocated shoulder, but that’s about it for the injury report. Clippers forward Wesley Johnson said his plantar fasciitis in both feet was improving. The Clippers hope that’s the extent of their injury issues after playing 45 games this season without Griffin because of a broken hand, partially torn quadriceps tendon and four-game suspension for punching a team assistant equipment manager.

Follow Ben Bolch on Twitter: @latbbolch