Earlier this week, Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul suffered a torn left thumb ligament and will be out for an estimated 6-8 weeks following surgery. While Blake Griffin may be back soon from his knee surgery, the Clippers will have to figure out a way to stay afloat with both players out for at least the next week.
Even when Blake Griffin does come back, the Clippers will still be without Chris Paul for 5+ weeks and that alone will be a huge challenge. Raymond Felton, Jamal Crawford, and Austin Rivers will be expected to run the offense until Paul returns and do all they can to make up for Chris Paul's 17.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 9.7 assists per game.
The Clippers can't seem to catch a break when it comes to injuries. It feels like during the past couple of seasons, they're always dealing with at least one of their key players on the shelf for several weeks, which makes it really hard to develop continuity and team chemistry. While I do not personally believe the Clippers at full strength have enough pieces to win a championship, all of these injuries really do take its toll and make things a lot tougher.
As far as where they are in the standings, the Clippers are currently tied with the Utah Jazz for 4th place in the Western Conference with a 29-16 record. With home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs on the line, these next several weeks without Chris Paul are crucial. If there is anything that should give the Clippers some hope, it's the fact that Blake Griffin should be back within the next 7-10 days. If he is able to get back sooner rather than later that will be huge.
When it comes to weathering this storm, the Los Angeles Clippers need to play smart, disciplined basketball and really play as team. They still have a lot of nice players in Jamal Crawford, Austin Rivers, J.J. Redick, and DeAndre Jordan, so it's not like they don't have anybody to go to during this stretch. All four of those guys will need to step up their game and do a good job getting each other going until Blake Griffin and Chris Paul return. The Clippers will need to have a win by committee approach and so it will be vital for all of their healthy bodies to do their part to step up and make plays.
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