Clippers clinch playoff berth with 108-95 victory over Jazz

Tonight, we really needed him. It’s nice to be the one giving them out instead of taking them for once. You aren’t going to win many games when you play like Cleveland did on defense.

Hayward asked to be taken out of the game in the fourth, when he sat on the bench with an ice pack on his knee.

Rivers deployed his players as stenographers at Staples Center.

The Jazz present an interesting matchup for the Clippers. “Their sets, playing them four times”. If he misses a game or two, Utah will be more reliant on Rodney Hood, who has had his own knee issues of late.

George Hill also had a solid bounce back after his terrible game in Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon, scoring 17 and dishing out five assists.

In terms of experience, it’s practically no contest. They’re surrounded by All-Star DeAndre Jordan (12.5 points, 13.6 rebounds), sharpshooter J.J. Redick (14.7 points) and key role players in Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers, who both average a hair over 12 points per game.

According to Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune, Gordon Hayward (bruised left quad) will not play on Monday vs. the Pelicans.

In the locker room, Gobert told Tim MacMahon of ESPN, “We’ve got guys that compete, but some of us don’t compete, some of us just think about scoring”. “But in the playoffs, everything changes”.

At minimum, that means the suspension will carry over into at least the first 10 games of next season and likely longer, since Noah is not now able to play. However, the Pelicans had moderate play in its 73 National Basketball Association games in this season.

“We still haven’t had our team”, Snyder said. In their last meeting with the Clippers, John Wall and company took care of business at Verizon Center, winning 117-110.

“The spirit is getting there”, Paul said.

The Jazz had beaten the Pelicans just three weeks earlier at Vivint in a game that went to the final minute before Utah was able to escape with an 88-83 victory.

Except, the playoffs are a different beast entirely.

Utah has been a team on the rise in recent seasons, and the pieces have finally come together for one of the NBA’s deepest teams.

LOS ANGELES In the week prior to Saturday’s game against the Jazz, the Clippers won three games against teams they should beat and dropped one against a team they also should have beaten. By the time the regular season wraps on April 12, the tilts on tap could look entirely different. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: when Solomon Hill attacks with his dribble – often in transition – good things happen. “It’s just part of the schedule, and you just have to adjust to it”.

The Clippers have eight games remaining, including five at home. The starters reestablished the double-digit cushion that they had earned in the first half, and a driving layup by CP3 extended the lead back up to 14. “I don’t know. But obviously, we’re probably more than likely going to face them in the playoffs, so it’s good for momentum going into the playoffs”.