For those Los Angeles Clippers fans who assumed the worst after Chris Paul left the team’s victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder with a left thumb injury on Monday, your fears have been confirmed.
According to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register, Paul will miss the next six to eight weeks with a torn ligament in that right thumb:
SOURCE: Chris Paul has a torn ligament in his left thumb and will require surgery. Expected to miss 6-8 weeks
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) January 18, 2017
Six to eight weeks means March 1 to March 15 — Chris Paul will have surgery on left thumb Wednesday
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) January 18, 2017
As if things couldn’t get worse, the Clippers still have a bunch of games left against the Golden State Warriors:
The Clippers will play the Warriors three times before Chris Paul returns, assuming no miracle recovery
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) January 18, 2017
And then there’s this from ESPN Stats & Info:
Since the start of last season, the Clippers are 3-9 in games without both Chris Paul and Blake Griffin
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 18, 2017
The Clippers are hopeful Blake Griffin will return this month; he has been sidelined since Dec. 18 after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his knee.
In the meantime, they’ll be forced to plow on without their two best players—a real problem.
Since the start of last season, the Clippers are being outscored by 5.8 points per 100 possessions in regular-season and playoff games when Paul and Griffin aren’t on the floor, according to NBA Wowy. And there’s reason to think things will get worse now. That sample size is littered with small stretches during single games; the Clippers could be without both of their best players for at least five, perhaps more.
Fortunately for them, the bottom half of the Western Conference is hot garbage, so their playoff hopes are safe. Their chance of coming together, healthy and able, in time to avoid another first- or second-round exit is a different story.
