In the spring, with no end to stay-at-home orders or resumption of the NBA season in sight, Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers stayed positive.
In interviews and on podcasts, he championed the team's mantra of "Win the Wait." Virtual guest speakers including Mike Tyson added variety to the monotony.
But over time, Rivers grew anxious. His team had bargained away much of its future to build a roster capable of winning four rounds of postseason basketball now. In March, one month before the playoffs were set to begin, the Clippers looked better than ever _ players healthy, their talent harnessed. Then the novel coronavirus shut it all down. At times, Rivers said, he felt upset.
"You're looking at our team, like wow, man, we've got a shot here," Rivers said Sunday. "And we may not have a season."
When the postseason the Clippers feared might be lost finally arrived Monday, 300 days after the regular season began, Rivers claimed relief. The feeling lasted mere minutes, however. Then Game 1 of their series against Dallas went sideways and the opportunity they'd waited months for nearly slipped away in a 118-110 victory.
Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points with 12 rebounds to lead the Clippers and Paul George added 27 points to help overcome 42 points by Luka Doncic, the most in NBA history by a player making his playoff debut.
Leading 18-2 less than four minutes into the first quarter, the Clippers looked like the team on a mission they have said they are. But as their starters departed and Patrick Beverley, the spark-plug guard who guarded Doncic at the point of attack early on, drew three quick fouls, their early pressure dissipated and their advantage crumbled. Over the next 13 minutes, Dallas outscored the Clippers 48-14 to build a 14-point lead.
Even in an arena without fans, the Clippers' bench was quieter than normal.
It took a 19-7 Clippers run before halftime to salvage the half, even if they entered the third quarter still trailing by three with George also saddled with three fouls.
For the game's first four minutes, Doncic made easy plays look hard against a smothering, switching defense that forced five turnovers. He would finish with 11 turnovers. Upon returning to the game after getting an ankle retaped, however, he made the difficult appear effortless while he, along with seven Dallas three-pointers in the opening quarter, engineered the Mavericks' stunning comeback. For one of his nine assists, the 21-year-old found Seth Curry for an open three-pointer after driving into the paint and wrapping a pass around a defender's shoulder and firing it 17 feet.
Through it all, the Clippers were steadied by a player who has struggled to find consistency since joining in February: Marcus Morris Sr. He finished with 19 points but perhaps his most impactful moment came three minutes into the third quarter when his contact on a driving Doncic after the whistle led to a verbal disagreement. Their exchange quickly drew the attention of teammates, including 7-foot-3 Mavericks star Kristaps Porzingis, who entered the fray and quickly was whistled for a second technical foul after some pushing. Porzingis finished with 14 points and six rebounds.
Doncic laughed in disbelief at the call while Morris tried to explain why Porzingis deserved it. After the ejection, the Clippers began a 19-7 run for a seven-point lead with two minutes to play in the third quarter.
That easily could have been the game. But in this series opener, nothing was so simple.
Dallas closed to within one point with five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but the Clippers' offensive options closed out a 15-8 run. Morris made an 18-foot jumper from the baseline in Doncic's face. Beverley drilled a corner three-pointer when Dallas' defense sagged off to guard a drive by George. Then George stepped into a 25-foot three-pointer with 42 seconds left and drilled it for an eight-point lead.
