Chris Paul suffered a fractured right hand in the Los Angeles Clippers’ Game 4 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, leaving the arena with a cast and likely missing the rest of the NBA playoffs.
The Los Angeles Clippers seriously cannot catch a break, except in the most literal and painful sense of the word. After Golden State Warriors superstar and league MVP Stephen Curry was diagnosed with a MCL sprain on Monday, his expected two-week absence gave the Clippers a golden opportunity to surpass the depleted champs in the second round. Yet, in a 98-84 Game 4 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, just hours after the news about Curry, Chris Paul suffered a third metacarpal fracture on his right hand.
It’s hard to believe just how unlucky this is for the Clippers. They caught some injury-based luck with their likely upcoming opponents in the Warriors, and now their own point guard and best player is down.
J.A. Adande of ESPN has reported the latest on Paul, revealing that he will likely miss the entirety of the playoffs:
"A source said Chris Paul is “most likely” out for the rest of the playoffs because of the broken bone in his right hand. It’s possible there could be a better prognosis after more X-Rays once the swelling goes down."
It’s almost even more frustrating due to the fact that it came on a play Paul makes constantly throughout every game. He’s always going for steals, looking to strip the ball from unsuspecting attackers or breaking up transition plays. Yet, it’s that routine, non-contact play that led to the fracture in the third quarter as he tried stealing the ball from a driving Gerald Henderson.
To add even more heartache to the Clippers and their fans, a shot of Paul leaving the arena with a cast on his right hand and arm hanging in a sling summed up the team’s outlook for the playoffs now: broken and depleted.
Chris Paul leaving with cast on right hand, arm in a sling pic.twitter.com/e8etQe4yLa
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) April 26, 2016
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There’s no need to explain just how devastating this is for the Clippers. Paul has been their best player at both ends of the court since he arrived in L.A., showcasing unmatched ability as a floor general while doubling as the NBA’s best defensive point guard, making the All-Defensive first team for the last four years.
Those abilities only shined brighter in the three-month absence of Blake Griffin, with averages of 21 points, 10.5 assists, 2.1 steals and 46 percent shooting highlighting Paul as the NBA’s Point God.
After he helped the Clippers early in Game 4 against the Blazers by scoring the team’s first 12 points and running the offense, the impact of his departure was immediate. And now, rather than just going forward against a Blazers team that fought harder to even the series at 2-2, the Clippers’ outlook for the second round is bleak.
Next: Has Clippers' shot at Conference Finals gone now?
With both CP3 and Curry down, the second round will now be a rivalry where the two best players aren’t even able to step onto the court (at least for a large part of the series in Curry’s case). The Warriors can now thank their lucky stars that’s the case, holding onto their superior defense and depth to lead them forward.