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LA Clippers face a difficult stretch: How they can stay in the playoff picture

By Ryan Snellings

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 11: (EDITORS NOTE: this image has been converted to black and white.) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the LA Clippers stands on the court for the National Anthem before the game against the Toronto Raptors on December 11, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 11: (EDITORS NOTE: this image has been converted to black and white.) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the LA Clippers stands on the court for the National Anthem before the game against the Toronto Raptors on December 11, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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With a stretch of nine games against all Western Conference foes, how can the LA Clippers stay involved in the playoff race?

At 17-10, the LA Clippers are well above their projected winning pace. They currently sit in fourth place in the Western Conference, trailing the first place Nuggets by only a single game. On the flip side, they are only 3.5 games up on the ninth seed Portland Trailblazers. Sounds like the perfect time for a gauntlet of a schedule to close out the month, right?

Over the next nine games to close out the month of December, the Clippers face all Western Conference foes and none of them are bad. In fact, they all are sitting at or above .500. Here’s the list:

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  • December 13 @ San Antonio Spurs
  • December 15 @ Oklahoma City Thunder
  • December 17 vs Portland Trailblazers
  • December 20 vs Dallas Mavericks
  • December 22 vs Denver Nuggets
  • December 23 @ Golden State Warriors
  • December 26 vs Sacramento Kings
  • December 28 @ Los Angeles Lakers
  • December 29 vs San Antonio Spurs

That is one heck of a way to end 2018, huh? The only positive you can glean from this is that only four of those games are away games with one being “at” the Lakers, which hardly counts due to no travel.

The worst part of this schedule? The Clips have to play versus the (current) first seed Denver Nuggets on the 22nd before flying out for the second night of a back-to-back in Golden State versus the Warriors.

Thanks a lot schedule makers.

Oh, and let’s not forget that Lou Williams is likely out for every single one of these games.

So how do we stay in the middle of playoff contention with this schedule in front of us? It won’t be easy. This rings especially true if the team continues to play poorly as they have in their last few games.

It all comes down to earning the “easier” ones. No, there are no true easy games during this stretch, but there are definitely some games that are more winnable than others. Tonight’s game versus San Antonio would be a prime example. The team has struggled and sits at 14-14 on the season. They aren’t the dominant team of the past but still will need a full team effort to knock off.

The game versus Sacramento is another of the “easier” games, but the last time the two teams faced off, the Kings nearly completed the comeback.

So, what’s a realistic outlook? Honestly, 5-4 wouldn’t shock me and doesn’t seem to out of question.

Wins against the Spurs, Mavericks, Lakers and Kings seem the most logical with one other sprinkled in. Finishing at 5-4 could drop the team all the way to the bottom of the playoff picture, putting them at 22-14.

No, sitting around 7th place isn’t an ideal place to be, but it still makes the post season. Picking up any wins against the West is huge but also hard to earn.

I can’t tell you everything this team needs to pull off a successful run to finish the month with a positive record, but I can tell you that they need to get back to playing hard. They believe that is their identity, but have not shown it as of late. That has to change.

dark. Next. Kevin Durant praises Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Buckle in Clippers fans. We are in for a bumpy ride to end the month.

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