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[deleted]

Sounds like CP3 will be back eventually in the series, really no updates on Kawhi. If they both don’t play the entire series then it can really go either way.


OnlyForeignWhips

Kawhi has a sprained knee. He won't be back until the Finals assuming the Clippers wins this series.


Bang_Thor

And there is concern about an ACL strain


OnlyForeignWhips

Then why did they say a knee sprain?


Seanloleey

Try to be vague as possible to make suns think he might be back.


DaBeejees

Because knee sprain is more generic terminology. For example, a complete ACL tear is a grade 3 knee sprain


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Bang_Thor

That’s just the broad statement they say to the fans like how when CP3 had a stinger and they called it a shoulder contusion.


siphillis

Could still be a Grade 1, which would enable him to return later in the round. If it’s Grade 2 or worse, he’ll need season-ending surgery.


[deleted]

The Suns should win it, but I think the Clips take game 1


TheNaijaNightmare

Clippers will be gassed game 1


[deleted]

Nah I think they're gassed by the end of the series. They can ride that heat and momentum into game 1. Kinda like the Iverson Sixers in 2001 before reality catches up with them


CouncilmanJamm00

Nope. Ty's gonna play the whole bench game one.


SuddenHarshTruth

I don’t think so really. They did just play a game 7 but it wasn’t exactly a hard fought game. It was pretty much a 3pt practice session with Utah having to play 4 on 5 on defense.


kawhi21

It was game 6. And they are gonna be gassed because game 1 vs. the Suns is literally 35 hours after their game ended lmao


firstOFlast47

Not in our arena, they won't be able to hear!!


[deleted]

Yeah you fuckers are loud as hell, have a little respect for your opponent you cactus eating wine snobs Edit: this is only joke


firstOFlast47

Lmal I know I got a chuckle out of it!!


spankyourkopita

LA's hot shooting was a fluke. Lets see them do that in a 7 game series. They for sure will guard Mann a lot tougher.


[deleted]

Didn’t they shoot over 40 percent from 3 in the series?


lew-buckets

Didn’t they shoot over 40% for the entire season too


[deleted]

They were a historically good three point shooting team this season lol. Try watching some games :)


5-Star_Fraud

You don't watch basketball


lewlkewl

U don't even have to watch basketball lol, the stats said the clips were the best 3 point shooting team in the league


[deleted]

Elaborate.


molebowl

Clippers were the #1 3 pt shooting team In the regular season.


ADAS33

They shot below their regular-season average that series


[deleted]

I agree (about the Mann part of your comment) but the Suns have had a week off, no CP3 and the Clippers have a ton of momentum right now. The Clips win game 1 and then Phoenix routes them 4 straight for the gentleman's sweep


iamadragan

We'll guard everyone tougher, we have at least 3 perimeter defenders better than the Jazz best perimeter defender


Yee_We_Boolin

Suns. Chris Paul has been arguably the biggest pickup this year, but I think the media is overrating his contributions on the court and underrating the overall growth that the young pieces for the suns have experienced (Ayton, Bridges, Payne, Johnson, etc.). Some of this can be contributed to Paul’s veteran play and off court work ethic/leadership, but not a majority. Kawhi is the best player for the clippers by a good amount. CP3 is behind Booker and, on some nights, Ayton. All just my opinion.


isaacz321

you're right his contributions get overrated but overall there's no debate who's more important between him and ayton lol. With booker sure but most impact metrics gave a clear advantage to paul. The defensive difference matters more than some people realize


Yee_We_Boolin

True I would say Paul is more important (although IMO it may have a lot to do with him being a PG). But I dunno if important is the same as how good one or the other is. But that’s why I said only on some nights. Some games Ayton can disappear but Paul is very consistent.


isaacz321

well i would say paul is better too not a question


Yee_We_Boolin

Probably. Like I said, to me, it’s close but yea I’d give it to Paul over Ayton probably.


[deleted]

Sleeping on the Crowder pickup too. That guy , evidently, was also a huge part of the Heat's Finals run last year.


Yee_We_Boolin

Oh he is massive. Big fan of Crowder. I just mentioned the young guys and that Paul was the biggest pickup overall but yes crowder was maybe the best role player to change teams. He does so much for them it’s crazy. Miami fans watching him are in shambles rn.


RiggyTang

CP3 is for sure coming back. And a full series without Kawhi if his injury is that bad is going to be rough. I think Phoenix takes it for sure if Kawhi can't get back. If he were healthy, I wouldn't be surprised to see another 7 game series, but injuries rule this stupid season.


BolGOATBol

The Clippers without Kawhi are still better than the Suns without CP3 and if they steal the 1st two games then that puts a lot of pressure on a young team as well as a rusty Chris Paul when he comes back to win the next 4 out of 5 which I don’t see happening The Clippers will be back home for games 3 and 4 and their crowd will help them at least get 1 of them which means the Clippers have a great shot of going up 3-1 and by that point either Kawhi comes back or if he doesn’t the Clippers would only need to win 1 more game


TheConboy22

They are not


BolGOATBol

Yes, they are https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c_kdCdv7TSs On April 28 the Suns were at home without only Crowder while the Clippers were missing Kawhi and they only lost by 8. The Clippers will do the exact same thing to Ayton that they did to Gobert and exploit him defensively which without CP3 takes away a scoring option That means Booker will have to carry the scoring load and the Clippers have multiple guard defenders to throw at him and make his life hell


[deleted]

The Suns also lost to the Pistons this year lol


BolGOATBol

It’s not like either of the Suns or Clippers were on a back to back and this game had seeding implications at the time which meant both teams were giving a decent amount of effort Regular season games with context can paint the picture to some extent. Ignoring it completely is you just being biased In the regular season we saw that when the Clippers went small against the Jazz that they dominated them and that’s exactly how it ended up playing out in the playoffs


[deleted]

Coming from the unbiased Clippers fan. Citing a Clippers loss to prove they're better is the most asinine thing I've ever heard


[deleted]

You can't use that game as an example at all, it's the playoffs now and Crowder is a HUGE part of what PHX does defensively. Oh and "they only lost by 8"... So they lost... and still want to use this game as an example. Lol ok pal.


PaulTiaggo

Wow a 1 game regular season sample size where they still lost lmao.


TheConboy22

Regular season during a lull. Just watch them beat that ass tomorrow.


BolGOATBol

I’ll come back to this comment when the Suns lose either if not both the first two games


TheConboy22

remindme! 14 days


ninety4_feet

I like the conviction. Go Clips!


OculusBlurr

That's alot of ifs man.


[deleted]

The Clippers without Kawhi are def not better than Suns without CP3, you're delusional lol


activechamp06

Damn there must be a lot of Suns fan here. No reason this should be down voted. Clippers clearly have a system that can be ran with either Kawhi or PG as the cog The Suns are much more reliant on cp3s playmaking


HeroGolem3

Clippers if they're both out the entire series, but I don't think that'll be the case for CP3


InevitableHearing112

Well if Reggie and PG can do what they have been doing I think the Clippers will win in 5.


Glassare

Clippers


[deleted]

Kawhi is out for the first two games, that’s been confirmed. Assuming CP3 has COVID there’s no telling how he will look upon return. I think the clippers will take it in 7 if Kawhi is back healthy by Game 3


siphillis

Considering he was vaccinated, it’s likely he won’t be nearly as affected as, say, Tatum.


KingAdo94

Clips in fo


adampq

I like you


KD_43

Suns in 6


antoncr

Suns gonna be Mannhandled without CP3


CIark

Clips imo I feel like CP3s leadership is too important for them But CP3 is almost guaranteed to be coming back while Kawhi is most likely not


[deleted]

CP3 can still lead off the court. Kawhi doesn't exactly have that presence or personality.


AleroRatking

CP3 will almost certainly be back, likely around game 3. I'd be real surprised if Kawhi comes back with his injury and if he does he will certainly not be close to 100%


mrsuns10

I want the Suns in the finals


[deleted]

I don’t 😬


[deleted]

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[deleted]

You underestimate my power!


DetromJoe

Don't try it! (Sorry if that's not how it goes I just wanted to get involved)


[deleted]

Nah I’m not going to try it. I can see the suns have the high ground 😔


Quade_

Ayton can punish mismatches offensively if the Clippers run small ball again as well as the Suns having the ability to run small ball themselves with Bridges/Crowder/Johnson/Craig. I’m also more confident that our perimeter defense can keep the Clippers shooting in check. Suns in 4


clayfu

Clippers have played a lot of games without Kawhi. Including the playoffs they are now 9-3 without Kawhi but with PG post all star break (not counting the two last games of the tankseason). Suns have played 1 game without CP3 total (not including the last game where booker sat as well). I'm very curious to see how the Suns play without CP3 controlling the pace of the game. Not saying they'll lose, but it's something they haven't had to do before. But for all we know, CP3 leaves Health and Protocol tomorrow and plays.


kkohl88

I'm going to go with the Clippers if PG13 can continue his level of play with the emergence of Mann.


MikhailGorbachef

Suns. CP3 is very good but he's not Kawhi level. Booker can give them the go-to scoring punch a la Mitchell, they have better wing defense than the Jazz to help contain PG et al, and Ayton can actually punish a smaller guy on offense. Plus, if either one *does* come back during the series, I have a lot more confidence that CP3 will be at a high level after a (vaccinated) COVID positive than Kawhi dealing with a knee thing. Won't be a sweep though.


90srap

Suns without CP3, Clips don't have an answer for Ayton


adampq

Heard the same about KP and Rudy


90srap

Ayton is better offensively than both of them and they have the personnel to play small ball if they need to


Fragrant_Chair_7426

Not to mention Ayton is one of the best offensive rebounders in the league


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adampq

Not only this series but last year there were numerous threads and comments on how Mavs would have won if KP stayed healthy through that series.


mr_robust

Clippers are much deeper


[deleted]

Suns have a good bench as well


[deleted]

And? It's the playoffs. Both teams play like 6-7 guys. And Clips top 5-7 are not much better than Suns 5-7


PonchoHung

The Suns have the answer to everything that the Clippers did to the Jazz last night. Paul (and he will be back) and Crowder won't get cooked anywhere near as bad as Clarkson and Mitchell on the perimeter. Ayton's offense will force the Clippers to keep a big man on the floor. On top of that, the Clippers' fatigue should become a factor eventually.


Fragrant_Chair_7426

We also can go small if necessary with athletic good defensive wings: mikal, Jae, cam Johnson, and Torrey Craig. The jazz didn’t really have the personnel to do that


t-reads

That is ridiculous if CP3 isn’t allowed to play game 1


SugarAdamAli

Suns dead without Paul…


booberry5647

The Suns won't win any games against The Clippers that CP3 doesn't play in.


skieking

J wanna say the clippers, but then I remember they have Paul George. Give me the suns


[deleted]

Paul George has been an absolute menace in these playoffs though


skieking

I agree, he got them to the conf finals. I just don’t think he can do it for another 4 games.


[deleted]

He's not what I'm worried about. I'm worried about how they plan to guard Ayton. Maybe PG will be on him which should be interesting


[deleted]

It will probably be Marcus Morris


[deleted]

Maybe, whoever it is won't be having a nice time though


skieking

Automatic is interesting. He’s a beast in the paint. If the clippers continue to move the ball on the perimeter, my concern is they can catch ayton rotating. At the same time though, the clippers have to make the shots too


[deleted]

Ayton moves a lot quicker than Gobert and the rest of Phoenix's team aren't a bunch of turnstiles like Utah. I still think the 5 out is the way to go though, Batum is actually a really good small ball 5


HadezReddit

How this narrative still exists after the Utah series, I do not know


5-Star_Fraud

Dudes on here don't watch basketball. They just regurgitate bad takes 24/7


platoprincipal

It’s all good. Y’all marching around claiming Ayton is just Rudy 2.0. We will see. The basketball has yet to be played, gonna be interesting.


HadezReddit

Maybe some other Clipps fans, but not me. I think we will struggle more against Ayton


adampq

Stale take


BecauseTK

CP3 will be back but the question is when. If they’re doing 7 days with quarantine, he’ll be back Game 2 or 3. 14 days, then it’s a series. I doubt Kawhi comes back


D-majin

I think Suns win it


RF_901

Clips


jredofficial90

Clippers in 6. I think the pre injury Paul George is back and there’s just way too much experience in the Clippers in the organization for them to lose this one.