Another way of phrasing postseason road games is a complicated, troubling challenge where players can hardly hear through their surroundings. The team that finishes as the lower seed is ultimately forced to win at least one battle in enemy territory. This is even more of a task for those not good in away games during the regular season.
The LA Clippers' regular season road record was 20-21. Given that this mark is under .500, you may ask how they got the fifth seed. That is because they had the fourth most home wins in the NBA at 30.
Furthermore, the blueprint against the Denver Nuggets, who play at Ball Arena, one of the toughest in the league due to crowd and elevation, was to win one out of the first two. The Clippers lost game one, meaning they had to adjust and run off with the second to gain leverage.
Nonetheless, the outcome went according to plan, as the Clippers won game two. This warfare had several lead changes and ties, but when Norman Powell and Jamal Murray got chippy with each other, the emotion and intensity was raised multiple levels higher.
All in all, the Clippers won by three, and although certain struggling players uncovered their clutch genes, the team grabbed their belongings victorious because of the best playoff riser in the history of the game.
Kawhi Leonard put the LA Clippers' name back into the title debate
In game one, the two-time champion Kawhi Leonard was mediocre at best. He did score 22 points, shooting 9-15, with three steals, but he turned the ball over seven times on just two assists. This strange characteristic for Leonard stemmed from the fatigue of being thousands of feet above sea level in Denver.
Moreover, head coach Tyronn Lue appeared to have preached nonstop on taking care of the ball behind the scenes as his first option. Leonard reacted accordingly, as any max-contract superstar should, by only turning the ball over once in 39 minutes.
The singular turnover is impressive, but what is more important is that Leonard dropped 39 points on 19 attempts from the field. This is an incredible and monstrous stat line that skips major details.
Leonard had 21 points in the first half on nine-of-ten shooting and a smothered buzzer to enter the locker room with a three-point lead.
That said, Leonard, playing like the historic playoff performer he is, forces experts to revolve the noun championship over the Clippers' team name.