Even for a crew that has been outlined by its failures, the Clippers’ implosion in opposition to Denver in Recreation 7 of their second-round playoff sequence was a brand new and spectacularly terrible low.

The Western Convention ultimate stays the Promised Land, by no means to be visited, excruciatingly shut however ever past the Clippers’ attain. This season was alleged to be totally different for them, with two-time NBA Finals most respected participant Kawhi Leonard aboard to hold them calmly by adversity and Paul George to set an ordinary of excellence at each ends of the ground, however it ended as too many earlier than this have ended, within the second spherical and with the data they may have and may have executed extra.

They went into the playoffs as favorites in opposition to Dallas and once more in opposition to Denver. They left the playoffs with one other failure on their file after they blew a gasket within the second half of their 104-89 loss to the resilient Nuggets and blew a 3-1 sequence lead. This was an utter collapse of thoughts and physique, of breath and coronary heart.

“I simply assume Denver beat us throughout,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers mentioned throughout a video information convention with reporters. “For me proper now, I’m within the place of giving Denver extra credit score and also you guys can determine the place all of the blame goes.”

Since he insisted on assigning blame, let’s begin with Rivers himself, for stubbornly insisting on double-teaming Nikola Jokic a lot of the sport. Jokic, who has the positive passing contact of some extent guard, dished out 13 assists in a monstrous triple-double efficiency. Jamal Murray, left open on lots of these double-teams, had 20 factors within the second quarter and 40 factors general, with solely 4 free throws.

Expectations have been excessive for the Clippers. In the end, they fell brief, whether or not due to all of the lineups they needed to play due to accidents and playoff-bubble absences or due to an absence of conditioning or one thing else.

Rivers mentioned gamers’ conditioning was lacking badly sufficient in order that, “guys have been asking to come back out, so that you needed to do it, however that’s not typical for Recreation 7.” They need to have been keen to depart every thing that they had on the ground. That’s one other unrealized expectation.

“We didn’t meet them. That’s the underside line,” Rivers mentioned. “I’m the coach and I’ll take any blame for it, however we didn’t meet our expectations, clearly. As a result of if we had, in my view, we’d nonetheless be taking part in.”

Leonard (six for 22) and George (4 for 16) have been manner off, most horribly in a stretch of 12 straight missed photographs to finish the third quarter and deep into the fourth quarter. That’s not why the Clippers moved heaven and earth and cash and a raft of first-round draft picks to accumulate them. George mentioned the expectations weren’t too burdensome for them.

“It’s apparent stress to stay as much as title expectations however as a participant you need that. You need that,” he mentioned. “First time I’ve been in that state of affairs the place we’re anticipated to win.

“However it’s what it’s. It’s no cop-out. The very fact of matter is we didn’t stay as much as the expectations, however I believe internally we felt this isn’t a championship or bust yr for us.”

Rivers didn’t single George and Leonard out for blame. “Recreation 7s are a make-miss sport on the finish of the day. I don’t assume it was these two,” he mentioned. “I believe as a gaggle. It wasn’t simply these two. When you have a look at our shot high quality it was fairly dang good, however the ball didn’t go in, and on these nights you hoped that you would lean in your protection and I simply didn’t assume, though numbers say we have been defensive crew, I simply didn’t assume we ever realized that a part of our sport in any respect.”

The Nuggets had quite a bit to do with that as they grew to become the one NBA crew to get well from a 3-1 sequence deficit twice in a single postseason. “We discovered a approach to be a very good crew thrice,” coach Michael Malone mentioned.

On this sequence, that was greater than sufficient to beat the Clippers. “We did have championship expectations and we had the expertise to do it. I don’t assume we had the chemistry to do it and it confirmed,” Lou Williams mentioned.

“We had lapses on protection and on offense … it confirmed. However on the finish of the day, we have been up 3-1. We had two alternatives to win video games, we have been up 20 factors. We must always have closed this deal out and we didn’t, so that you give credit score to Denver for persevering with to play and we take our lumps and we maintain shifting.”

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They’ll harm for some time. They need to. They talked of bettering their chemistry sooner or later by staying collectively, by turning into as instinctual because the Nuggets have been, and that sounded good however who’s to say they gained’t must cope with accidents subsequent season too? They confronted adversity and blinked, and that’s one thing to be involved about.

“Guys needed to go residence for rightful causes. And we missed a whole lot of useful time collectively. With accidents within the common season and contained in the bubble, we didn’t get a lot time to be collectively,” George mentioned. “This was the longest stretch that I believe we’ve got performed collectively, however it wasn’t sufficient. I believe on this sequence, it confirmed.”

Denver’s a crew that’s been taking part in collectively a very long time.” When issues bought tough, once they wanted this or they wanted that, they only know one another. They’ve been on a string for thus lengthy and I believe it confirmed.”

The Clippers’ shortcomings confirmed up too. They performed themselves out of that long-anticipated West ultimate showdown with the Lakers, they usually’ll have to come back to phrases with one other failure in a historical past of them. “We’ve been very optimistic about us being collectively and constructing one thing down the highway,” George mentioned. However that they had two probabilities to construct one thing this yr they usually didn’t, they usually must stay with that.

Elliott reported from Los Angeles.