It’s difficult to characterize the Clippers’ Game 1 loss as an upset, in no small measure because the Utah Jazz are a very good team, but most of the basketball-watching world expected them to secure a victory on their home floor to kick off their first-round series, especially after Rudy Gobert went down with a knee injury just 17 seconds after tip-off.
Yet the Clippers looked lost and lethargic as they failed to take care of business against a squad missing one of its best players and now face something of a must-win situation in Game 2. Raymond Felton personally believes Gobert’s absence is what gave Utah a spark, and the way things played out in Game 1, he thinks – however misguidedly – that life just might easier with Gobert back in the lineup.
Raymond Felton with a Rudy Gobert take Jazz fans will share. pic.twitter.com/3XM1xrHZ46
— Aaron Falk (@aaronfalk) April 18, 2017
Unfortunately for Felton, it looks like he and the Clippers will have to face the Jazz without Gobert in Game 2 as well. The 7’1 center is progressing and even participated in practice on Monday to a certain extent, but the time-table for his return remains somewhat unclear.
Los Angeles will need to figure out a way to take advantage of his absence in the paint if they want to even up the series. Game 2 tips off on Tuesday night at Staples Center at 10:30 ET on TNT.
