The Los Angeles Clippers finished the regular season with the fourth best record in the Western Conference and will now have home court advantage against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The Clippers were able to work Blake Griffin back into the swing of things at the end of the regular season, so they are about as whole as they have been all season.
Well, at least they were until the final couple of games of the regular season. In the Clippers second-to-last game of the regular season, starting shooting guard J.J. Redick injured his heel and was forced to leave the game. At the time, it seemed like it was just a precaution because the Clippers playoff spot was already set in stone, but it may be more serious than that.
Redick is still dealing with some pain in that heel, and while his status is still in doubt, he and the Clippers are hopeful that he can give it a go in game one. The Clippers are fortunate that they start their playoff series on Sunday, as opposed to Saturday, which gives Redick an extra day to rest the heel for game one.
After injuring the heel against the Grizzlies in the penultimate game of the season, Redick sat out the regular season finale the next day. Despite missing the last game-and-a-half, head coach Doc Rivers remained fairly confident that Redick would be fine moving forward. Rivers, though, did admit that he would need to use the next couple of days for clarity on the issue.
At this point, it seems as though the likelihood is that Redick will suit up for game one, but that clearly isn't a guarantee. The Clippers don't want to risk having Redick injure the heel more seriously, but at the same time, they need him if they want to make a deep playoff run. The Clippers are expected to be able to handle the Blazers in the first round pretty easily, but they are still a dangerous team, so the Clippers need to be at full strength. If sitting Redick in game one means that he will be stronger for the rest of the series, that might be the move to make.
Redick had himself another excellent season in his third year with the Clippers. In 75 games, the former Duke star averaged 16.3 points while shooting 48 percent from the field and leading the league with his 48 percent shooting clip from beyond the arc.
