NBA Playoffs
Western Conference – Round 1
Tip-off: Monday, 10:35 p.m. ET
Line: Los Angeles -3.5, Total: 206.0

The Clippers will be looking to take a 3-1 series lead when they face the Blazers in Portland on Monday.

Los Angeles had a chance to go up 3-0 in this series, but the team was unable to close in Game 3. The Clippers led late in the game, but they ultimately fell 96-88 as one-point road favorites. Los Angeles did not play well offensively in the game, shooting just 40.9% from the floor. The team had shot 53.8% from the floor in Game 1 and 46.0% in Game 2, so it was a very disappointing outing for the Clippers. The Blazers, meanwhile, were a lot better offensively in this one. They may have shot just 42.5% from the field, but they had shot less than 40% in each of the previous two contests. One trend that seriously favors the Clippers is the fact that they are 13-2 ATS as a road favorite of 3.5 to six points over the past two seasons. The Blazers, meanwhile, are an impressive 7-0 ATS in home games after failing to cover in four or five of their past six this season. The only injury worth noting is that C Meyers Leonard (Shoulder) is out for the rest of the year for Portland.

The Clippers did not play well in Game 3, but they still had a chance to come away with a victory in the end. They’ll now look to turn things around and head back to Los Angeles with a 3-1 series lead. PG Chris Paul (26.3 PPG, 8.3 APG, 5.0 RPG, 2.0 SPG in playoffs) continues to play magnificent basketball for this Clippers team. Paul was 10-for-21 from the floor in Game 3 and had 26 points and nine assists in 38 minutes of action. He has been knocking down nearly every midrange jumper he has taken and will need to continue to be aggressive as a scorer moving forward. Paul does, however, need some help moving forward and PF Blake Griffin (14.3 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.0 SPG in playoffs) needs to be the one to provide it. He is shooting just 36.8% from the floor in the postseason and that is not going to cut it for Los Angeles. Griffin needs to start getting closer to the basket, as he has been settling for bad shots too often. He also needs to show more effort on the defensive end. Another guy who needs to get going is SG J.J. Redick (13.0 PPG in playoffs). Redick was just 2-for-10 from the floor and 1-for-4 from the outside in Game 3. The Clippers need him to knock down some shots in Game 4. His spacing really helps this Los Angeles offense operate and he needs to get it going soon.

The Blazers came away with a big Game 3 victory and their backcourt really rose to the occasion in the win. PG Damian Lillard (23.3 PPG, 4.3 APG, 4.3 RPG in playoffs) and SG C.J. McCollum (17.3 PPG, 3.3 APG, 3.3 RPG in playoffs) both showed up in a big way on Saturday, combining to score 59 points against the Clippers. It’s clear that they’ll both need to continue to shoot the ball well in order to win more games in this series. Lillard was really the catalyst in the victory, though. He finally held his own in his matchup with Chris Paul and that is something he’ll need to do more moving forward. He was aggressive going to the basket and that opened things up for him and his teammates. Another guy that stepped it up for the Blazers was SF Maurice Harkless (10.3 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.0 BPG in playoffs). Harkless finished Game 3 with 10 points, seven rebounds and a block in 31 minutes of action. He has been very active around the basket and is playing good basketball on both ends of the floor. If Harkless can continue to bring energy then the Blazers may be able to stay competitive the rest of the way.