At the start of the 2022 NBA Playoffs, with the Clippers themselves not playing, we took a glance around the league to check on some of our old friends who are participating in the postseason with new teams. For the next few weeks while the opening rounds of the playoffs are providing a constant stream of games, we’ll check in weekly on how the former Clippers in the playoffs and their new teams are doing.
- Lou Williams: The Underground GOAT has yet to play in the Hawks’ first-round series against the Miami Heat with a back injury. He’s listed as day-to-day, but I doubt he’ll see the active roster this postseason unless injuries in the backcourt force Nate McMillan’s hand. Next Game: Sunday 4/24, 4pm Pacific, TNT.
- Danilo Gallinari: Gallo has started all three games for Atlanta, first filling in for John Collins and then keeping the spot when Collins returned to replace the newly-injured Clint Capela. He’s averaging 10 points and 5 rebounds in 25 minutes, but really struggling offensively–just 36% from the field and 25% from three. The Hawks, currently down 2-1 to the Heat, could really use a big game from Gallinari to help them further extend this series. Next Game: Sunday 4/24, 4pm Pacific, TNT.
- Malik Fitts and Blake Griffin: Fitts’ Celtics lead Griffin’s Nets 2-0 in what seems like the true heavyweight bout of the 2022 first round. However, neither former Clipper has appeared in the series so far and neither seems likely to get meaningful minutes going forward (and if the games continue to be this intense, there might not be non-meaningful minutes). Next Game: Saturday, 4:30pm Pacific, ESPN.
- Serge Ibaka: The Milwaukee Bucks started the playoffs a bit sleepy and are now down Khris Middleton for a few weeks with a knee injury, but they lead the Chicago Bulls 2-1 after a massive blowout in game 3. Ibaka saw 8:39 of game time in game 3 and added 5 points and 6 rebounds, but all in garbage time as Milwaukee nursed a 30-point lead. He did also snag 38 first-half seconds in the Bucks’ game 2 loss, but ultimately Mike Budenholzer chose to go small with Bobby Portis ruled out for the game with an eye abrasion. Serge does seem like a guy Bud will turn to at some point in the playoffs for situational use. Next Game: Sunday, 10am Pacific, ABC
- Doc Rivers: Doc’s Sixers are taking care of business against the Toronto Raptors and have a 3-0 lead. It’s already time to start thinking about the second round for Philly, whether it comes against the top-seeded Miami Heat or the team that knocked the Sixers out last year, Atlanta. Doc hasn’t had to get creative in this series–they’re the more talented team, Toronto looks hopeless against Embiid, Maxey is having a breakout series, and the Sixers are hitting 46% from deep–but he deserves a lot of credit for their tight game 3 win, where a mindful and assertive timeout on the final possession made Embiid’s game-winner possible. Next Game: Saturday, 11am Pacific, TNT
- Tobias Harris: Tobi is having himself a series, averaging 19 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists on 59/64/83 shooting splits. He even played 46:44 in Philly’s massive road win in game 3, and is clearly one of the main 4 guys on this team (Harden, Maxey, Harris, and Embiid) who are going to play 40+ minute nightly in the playoffs. Maxey is deservedly getting most of the attention here, but Harris’ streaky play could be the x-factor that swings Philly crashing or soaring in an evenly-matched series later on. Next Game: Saturday, 11am Pacific, TNT.
- DeAndre Jordan: The GCCOAT (Greatest Clippers Center Of All Time) has yet to get the call from Doc this postseason, as sophomore PF/C Paul Reed backs up Embiid against the smaller Raptors. It seems likely that we’ll see DAJ at some point in this run even if things go according to plan for the Sixers–which might not happen if Joel Embiid’s thumb injury impacts his availability moving forward. Next Game: Saturday, 11am Pacific, TNT.
- Chris Paul: As he approaches his 37th birthday in two weeks, Paul is still adding bangers to his playoff legacy. He put up 30 points and 10 assists in game 1 against the Pelicans and then had a 28-point, 14-assist, 0-turnover masterclass in a narrow game 3 victory with Devin Booker sidelined. The Suns, now ahead 2-1 in the 1-8 series, should be able to survive the first round without Booker, but they’ll need CP3 to keep up this volume scoring. His regular season high scoring game was 27 this year, which he’s already topped twice. He hasn’t had two games with 30+ points in the same playoff series since 2015. Next Game: Sunday, 6:30pm Pacific, TNT.
- Landry Shamet: With Booker sidelined, Shamet is the main beneficiary in terms of minutes. He went from not playing in game 1 to getting 11:30 of time after Booker went down in game 2 to 29:30 off the bench in game 3. So far, he hasn’t made the impact you’d hope for in those 40 minutes of game time: 10 points on 4-10 shooting, 1-7 from deep, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 turnovers. The Suns are going to need some multiple-three/double-digit scoring games from Landry to help make up for Booker’s absence. Next Game: Sunday, 6:30pm Pacific, TNT.
- Willie Green and Garrett Temple: Green, a rookie head coach, is making a name for himself, even if the Pelicans don’t win this series. Temple seems thoroughly out of the rotation–even if the Pels need to dig deeper into their bench, I think Tony Snell would get the call first. Next Game: Sunday, 6:30pm Pacific, TNT.
- Patrick Beverley: The PatBev highs are still high for Minnesota, but the team also has some massive lows. Following from their veteran leader, the young Wolves are a fun watch and play an intense, impassioned brand of basketball–but they’re prone to getting a little too amped up and making mental mistakes. Bev is averaging just under 30 minutes per game (frequently limited by foul trouble) and 10 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 1.3 blocks. However, the Wolves need him to hit some threes, where he’s just 2-12 so far. In game 3, Minnesota led by as much as 26 in the early second quarter, let Memphis cut it down to 7 at halftime, and then pushed the lead back to 25 in the mid-3rd before blowing it again, losing the fourth quarter 37-12 and falling behind 1-2 in the series. Next Game: Saturday, 7pm Pacific, ESPN.
- Denver Nuggets: A host of former Clipper role players are seeing time for Denver, who now trail the Warriors 0-3 in an expectedly uncompetitive series with Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. both injured. Jeff Green has started all three games but had a muted impact. Austin Rivers is contributing as a trusted, gritty bench defender, but he’s fighting an uphill talent battle against Steph Curry and Jordan Poole. DeMarcus Cousins is more or less doing his job of floating the offense in short shifts with Nikola Jokic on the bench, scoring 24 points in 31 minutes so far this series, but his efficiency has been unsustainable. JaMychal Green is playing a bit role as a bench forward and has struggled to find his shot all year. It seems that a big blow will be dealt to our Former Clippers this week, with a sweep likely. Next Game: Sunday, 12:30pm Pacific, ABC.
- Reggie Bullock: Even as a noted Utah Jazz unbeliever, I’m pretty surprised to see Bullock’s Mavericks up 2-1 in this series without Luka Doncic. While the breakout star of the series has been Jalen Bruson, Bullock has been a big contributor, averaging 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists on 52/47/100 splits in nearly 45 minutes per game, making three threes in each of Dallas’ three contests. Dallas certainly has their sights set on getting Luka Doncic back and upsetting the Booker-less Suns in the second round, and Bullock will be a big part of those plans. Fellow former Clipper Boban Marjanovic appears to be well outside of the Mavs’ plans. Next Game: Saturday, 1:30pm Pacific, TNT.
FCIT2022NBAPOs (Former Clippers In The 2022 NBA Playoffs) Power Rankings:
(Subjectively ranked based on a combination of how they’re doing so far, how big of a role they’re playing, their likelihood of having an impact going forward, and how excited I’d be to see them get opportunities)
- Chris Paul
- Tobias Harris
- Reggie Bullock
- Doc Rivers (coach)
- Willie Green (coach)
- Patrick Beverley
- Austin Rivers
- Danilo Gallinari
- DeMarcus Cousins
- Jeff Green
- Landry Shamet
- JaMychal Green
- Serge Ibaka
- Lou Williams
- DeAndre Jordan
- Blake Griffin
- Boban Marjanovic
- Malik Fitts
- Garrett Temple
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