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With chance to take command, Clippers fail minor test
- Updated: April 24, 2016
5:31 AM ET
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Los Angeles Clippers had a chance on Saturday night to do something they had never done in franchise history. It seems like over the past five seasons they’ve made a habit of taking down these kinds of pesky records one by one, but this one will likely stand for at least another year.
The Clippers have never won the first three games of a playoff series in their star-crossed history. The only other active NBA franchises that have never began a playoff series with three consecutive wins are the New Orleans Pelicans, Minnesota Timberwolves and Toronto Raptors. That’s obviously not the kind of company you want to keep when talking about the postseason, but it’s not surprising given the Clippers’ playoff history prior to 2012.
Yes, the Clippers still lead their first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers 2-1 heading into Monday’s Game 4 at the Moda Center, but there were enough moments of déjà vu late in Saturday’s 96-88 loss to make you wonder whether this series will end up being another long, grueling grind for the Clippers.
Coming into this postseason, five of the Clippers’ past eight playoff series had gone seven games, while two had lasted six games. The Clippers’ core group of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan has won three playoffs series together and each one went to Game 7. After beating the Blazers by at least 20 points in the first two games of this series and with the Warriors, Spurs and Thunder looking at possibly quick four- to five-game series, the Clippers talked about taking care of business when they had the opportunity coming into Saturday’s Game 3.
Chris Paul and the Clippers fell into old habits on Saturday, letting a wounded Portland team receive a shot of life. Craig Mitchelldyer/AP Photo
“You never say that you’ve been through everything, but we have been through a lot,” Griffin said after Game 2. “The one thing that I think we should use is, we’ve lost several different …
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