James Harden drives to the hoop against Donovan Mitchell as the Clippers host the Cavaliers at Intuit Dome.
The LA Clippers are in peak form right now, and their uptick in play couldn’t have come at a better time. They are just one game back of a top 6 seed in the Western Conference and look like a team no one will want to face in the playoffs.
Perhaps the best example of how good they’ve been lies in their most recent performance. The Clippers defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team with a strong case to be considered the best in the league right now, by a convincing 132-119 score. More than the final score, however, the way the Clippers won this game was impressive. They allowed 45 points in the first quarter and were down at the half, but they outscored Cleveland by 18 points in the second half to clinch the win — and inflict the Cavs a second straight loss in the process.
Kawhi Leonard scored 33 points in the win, and the star forward showed that he can still be a game-changer when he’s clicking on all cylinders. Plus, Ivica Zubac had 28 points and 20 rebounds and James Harden added 22 points and nine assists in the Clippers’ fourth straight victory. The win puts the Clippers in an interesting position going forward and shows the strength of their Big 3.
The top 6 seed detail is important, as it would get the Clippers out of having to play in the Play-In Tournament. They enter Wednesday’s slate with a 39-30 record and in eighth place, just a half-game behind the Minnesota Timberwolves.
However, things won’t get easier for them. The Clippers are slated to face the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Memphis Grizzlies, the New York Knicks and the Cavaliers again before the end of the month. That’s far from an easy stretch, but it will show if the Clippers are ready to make the jump toward being considered a title contender — or at least a team that can engineer a deep playoff run.
Much of the discussion surrounding the West’s contenders has understandably centered on the top of the table with teams like the Thunder, Nuggets, Lakers and Rockets generating plenty of buzz. Maybe the Clippers’ current status as the No.8 seed is a testament to the conference’s depth. But there’s also the possibility that the Clippers will enter that discussion if they keep up their current level of play.
