Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan misses two chances to make big difference in Game 1 against Jazz
DeAndre Jordan’s night looked as if it was about to get a lot easier about 10 seconds into the Clippers’ playoff opener.
That’s when his Utah Jazz counterpart, Rudy Gobert, bumped knees with the Clippers’ Luc Mbah a Moute and crumpled to the court Saturday night at Staples Center.
Gobert had to be helped off the court and into the locker room with what was diagnosed as a sprained left knee, later departing the arena for a precautionary MRI exam.
The loss of the 7-foot-1 Gobert left the Jazz with two far less heralded big men: Derrick Favors, who has been rounding back into form after a knee injury, and the sparingly used Jeff Withey to counteract Jordan, an All-Star and first-team NBA player who played for the U.S. Olympic team last summer.
Jordan filled up the stat sheet as usual but was left to lament two plays late in the Clippers’ 97-95 loss to the Jazz.
With the Clippers trailing by six points, Jordan was called for a technical foul that allowed Utah to extend its lead with 41/2 minutes left. Then, on the final play, Jordan contested Joe Johnson’s floating jumper with his outstretched hand, but the ball soared onto the rim and rolled into the basket.
“I think me and Jamal ran into each other,” Jordan said of colliding with teammate Jamal Crawford on the play.
The Jazz had secured the early momentum in the series and the Clippers could only ponder all the missed opportunities.
Jordan finished with 15 rebounds, 10 points and three blocks. He also managed a steal from Johnson that led to Blake Griffin getting fouled, resulting in two free throws that pulled the Clippers to within 94-93 with 23 seconds left.
But the technical foul was one of the small details the Clippers didn’t get right.
“We have a rule, no fourth-quarter techs. He got one,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “They make a difference, they really do. Our emotion and our frustration, that’s got to be something we have to control.”
Jordan also didn’t appear overly dominant against what might have been considered an overmatched front line.
“In some ways that helped them,” Rivers said of Utah’s resulting lineup switches after Gobert went out. “They got small and stretched the floor, which hurt us a little bit.”
Favors finished with 15 points and six rebounds in 32 minutes and Withey added three points and two rebounds in nine minutes. Gobert’s status for the balance of the series remained unknown.
“We’re not sure what the situation is with Rudy yet,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. “It would be nice to get him back.”
Injury update
Clippers guard Austin Rivers, who sat out the last six games of the regular season because of a left hamstring injury, resumed dribbling and shooting Saturday and said he was targeting next weekend for his return. That means he could be back as soon as Game 3 on Friday or Game 4 on April 23.
“Hamstrings are tricky, so you just have to be careful,” he said, “but I think a week should be fine.”
Rivers cemented his reputation as a gutsy player last season by stepping up during his team’s first-round playoff series against the Portland Trail Blazers when teammates Chris Paul and Griffin went down with injuries.
Twitter: @BA_Turner
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