Despite the absence of Danilo Gallinari, it was business as usual for the Los Angeles Clippers Saturday afternoon as they dispatched the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers 132-108 at home.

A back-and-forth affair early, the Clippers pulled away to the tune of a 17-4 run to close out the first half and didn’t look back. JaMychal Green, starting in place of Gallinari, had his best game in a Clippers uniform as he hit his first eight shots and finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continued his torrid stretch of the last 10-odd games as well.

Meanwhile, Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell, dominated as they have all season, as the bench combined to score 69 points.

For the Cavaliers, Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson led the charge, with 21 and 26 points, respectively in the loss. Cleveland was without Kevin Love, who missed the game due to shoulder soreness.

Observations

Rest for Danilo

Gallinari has played in 64 games this season, the most since he logged 71 for the Denver Nuggets back during the 2012-13 season, and, hopefully, he will play many more in the postseason.

But, after he played in just 21 contests a season ago, and with the postseason looming, it will be of the utmost importance to keep Gallinari as fresh, and uninjured, as possible in these last few days of the season. With crucial games against the Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets coming up — games that could affect their final seeding — having Gallinari sit this one out was almost a no-brainer.

Even had they lost to the Cavaliers, sitting Gallinari would have been the right call. Their best all-around player, the Clippers would stand no chance in the postseason had Gallinari gone down with a prolonged injury.

Jamychal Green Energized in Start

In his second start since he was acquired from the Grizzlies, Green had an extra hop in his step when he was on the court.

Green was flying around out of the gate, with eight points on four-for-four shooting and two offensive rebounds in the first quarter. He dropped ten points the rest of the way, shooting three-for-three from three-point range and remained active on the glass and the defensive side of the ball.

If Green can maintain that energy from the bench, he could prove a dangerous weapon for Doc Rivers in the postseason.

Jerome Robinson Can’t Find His Groove

Rookie Jerome Robinson has seen more than 30 minutes over the last two games, but has managed just 11 points, three rebounds and six assists.

Granted, Robinson is a rookie — not everyone can jump ahead of schedule as Gilgeous-Alexander has — but, with the postseason closing in, he may have missed his last opportunity to prove to Rivers that he can provide an offensive spark off the bench. Of course, with five games left, that could still change, but Robinson would be hard pressed to find time on the court, let alone perform well enough to earn a spot in Rivers’ postseason rotation, with three of those games against the Rockets, Jazz and Golden State Warriors.

Robinson is only 22-years-old and has plenty of (hopefully) high-level basketball ahead of him. That being said, it just may not come until next season.

Questions

Can Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Carry His Recent Performance into the postseason?

Gilgeous Alexander has been on a tear for the last two weeks, and things were no different against the Cavaliers. He followed up his 21 point, six rebound and two assist performance against the Milwaukee Bucks with 22 points, two rebounds and eight assists on Saturday.

In his last eight games, the rookie has thrived despite the massive offensive load placed on his shoulders; in those games, Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 15.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game while shooting 52.8 percent from the floor and 50 percent from three. His surge is a big part of why the Clippers are positioned to potentially steal the fourth seed from the Rockets.

But can he keep it up in the postseason?

As it always has been, the postseason is just a bit more competitive than the regular season — things get chippier and the referees tend to let things slide that they may not have in the regular season. This type of production would be a major boon to the Clippers and their playoff hopes, but the experience itself — performing at the highest level on the biggest stage — could be the most important thing for the development Gilgeous-Alexander.

Who Will Make Doc Rivers’ Playoff Rotation?

As is the nature of a team filled with role-players, Rivers has played deep into his bench throughout the season. But, when he does decide to cut off his rotation, who will be on the outside looking in?

The starting unit, alongside Williams and Harrell, are obvious locks. Beyond them, however, nothing is certain. Green, Garrett Temple, Tyrone Wallace, Wilson Chandler and Sindarius Thornwell have all had ups and downs this season, but no one has separated from themselves from the pack on a consistent basis.

This last five games could prove an audition for the shortened rotation but it’s anyone’s guess as to who will seize the opportunity.

Prediction

Clippers Make Rockets Sweat, Take Back 5th seed from Jazz

With a game against the Grizzlies on Sunday, the Clippers will have a chance to move back into the five spot in the Western Conference with a win over the Grizzlies. They would also move just two back of Houston for the fourth spot — potentially 1.5 back pending the Rockets contest with the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday.

Either way, it appears as if those the four, five and six seeds are going to go down to the wire.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.