Why the Clippers remain the favorites for the No. 2 seed after schedule release由卡哇伊爱小西瓜 发表在ClipsNation https://bbs.hupu.com/672
The NBA released its regular-season schedule for the resumption of play, and the Clippers emerged as one of the clear winners on Friday evening.
Here is the Clippers’ eight-game slate:
Clippers schedule
Thus far in the regular season, the Clippers have a 2-1 record against the Lakers, Pelicans, Suns and Thunder, a 2-0 record against the Mavericks and Trailblazers and a 1-1 record against the Nuggets. They have yet to play the Nets this season.
And here is a snapshot of the current West standings:
Western Conference standings
The Clippers’ schedule isn’t as easy as it was projected to be when the NBA’s restart plan was announced, but it’s still one of the easiest remaining schedules, particularly among the contending group.
The NBA replaced Clippers games against the Nets, Pacers and Kings with games against the Lakers, Trail Blazers and Thunder — a significant increase in difficulty, but somewhat offset by how easy the Clippers’ schedule already was.
They face three lottery teams (the Trail Blazers, Pelicans and Suns) and only two top-four seeds (the Lakers and Nuggets). There also is a back-to-back on Aug. 8 and 9 against the Trail Blazers and Nets.
It’s unknown if Kawhi Leonard, who has been on an injury management protocol for the left knee soreness he’s been dealing with, will play back-to-backs ahead of the postseason.
The schedule, combined with the Clippers’ current hold on the No. 2 spot in the West — a 1 1/2-game advantage over the Nuggets, a three-game advantage over the Jazz and four-game advantage over the Thunder and Rockets — makes them the solid favorites for the No. 2 seed, barring a calamity in training camp in Los Angeles or during play in Orlando (an unfortunate possibility).
The NBA’s readjustment of the schedule pits the Clippers against the Lakers on opening night, kicking off the seeding games with some drama and some fodder to discuss over the rest of the regular season. The Clippers will get their shot at revenge after losing to the Lakers 112-103 on March 8.
The penultimate tilt against the Nuggets on Aug. 12 will be pivotal as well, as it could be the deciding game in the battle for the West’s No. 2 seed. Denver has a much more challenging schedule than the Clippers, facing five top-four seeds (the Heat, Jazz, Lakers, Clippers and Raptors) and only two lottery teams (the Trail Blazers and Spurs).
THE NUGGETS' FULL 8 SEEDING GAMES SCHEDULE:
8/1: MIAMI @ 1 PM ET
8/3: OKC @ 4 PM ET
8/5: SAN ANTONIO @ 4 PM ET
8/6: PORTLAND @ 8 PM ET
8/8: UTAH @ 3:30 PM ET
8/10P: LAKERS @ 9 PM ET
8/12: CLIPPERS @ 9 PM ET
8/14: TORONTO TBD
— KENDRA ANDREWS (@KENDRA__ANDREWS) JUNE 26, 2020
There’s a chance the Clippers already will have the No. 2 seed locked up by Aug. 12, but the game could serve as a playoff preview, regardless.
On paper, the Clippers are clearly better than the Pelicans, Suns, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, Nets and Thunder. They should go something like 5-1 in those games. But five of the six teams — the Suns are a long shot — will be fighting for seeding and/or their playoff lives, so those games aren’t walk-overs by any means.
Though there are countless variables that can change between now and the start of the season, it’s reasonable to project the Clippers going somewhere between 5-3 and 7-1. At worst, they should go 4-4.
Again, COVID-19, injuries and player drop-outs will affect the games. We don’t have a fully crystallized picture yet. A lot can change between now and July 30, and a lot almost certainly will change once the games begin.
Ultimately, the Clippers are fortunate that they had already played one of the league’s toughest schedules, resulting in this condensed version being easier than that of most of their counterparts. Had the league entirely scrapped the previous remaining schedules, they could have potentially faced a much more difficult slate.
As long as the Clippers can go 5-3 in Orlando (including winning the Denver game) or 6-2 — assuming the Clippers and NBA can make it through the entire regular season without being shut down — the Clippers will be the heavy favorites to secure the No. 2 seed and position themselves opposite the Lakers in the Western Conference bracket.
The NBA released its regular-season schedule for the resumption of play, and the Clippers emerged as one of the clear winners on Friday evening.
Here is the Clippers’ eight-game slate:
Clippers schedule
Thus far in the regular season, the Clippers have a 2-1 record against the Lakers, Pelicans, Suns and Thunder, a 2-0 record against the Mavericks and Trailblazers and a 1-1 record against the Nuggets. They have yet to play the Nets this season.
And here is a snapshot of the current West standings:
Western Conference standings
The Clippers’ schedule isn’t as easy as it was projected to be when the NBA’s restart plan was announced, but it’s still one of the easiest remaining schedules, particularly among the contending group.
The NBA replaced Clippers games against the Nets, Pacers and Kings with games against the Lakers, Trail Blazers and Thunder — a significant increase in difficulty, but somewhat offset by how easy the Clippers’ schedule already was.
They face three lottery teams (the Trail Blazers, Pelicans and Suns) and only two top-four seeds (the Lakers and Nuggets). There also is a back-to-back on Aug. 8 and 9 against the Trail Blazers and Nets.
It’s unknown if Kawhi Leonard, who has been on an injury management protocol for the left knee soreness he’s been dealing with, will play back-to-backs ahead of the postseason.
The schedule, combined with the Clippers’ current hold on the No. 2 spot in the West — a 1 1/2-game advantage over the Nuggets, a three-game advantage over the Jazz and four-game advantage over the Thunder and Rockets — makes them the solid favorites for the No. 2 seed, barring a calamity in training camp in Los Angeles or during play in Orlando (an unfortunate possibility).
The NBA’s readjustment of the schedule pits the Clippers against the Lakers on opening night, kicking off the seeding games with some drama and some fodder to discuss over the rest of the regular season. The Clippers will get their shot at revenge after losing to the Lakers 112-103 on March 8.
The penultimate tilt against the Nuggets on Aug. 12 will be pivotal as well, as it could be the deciding game in the battle for the West’s No. 2 seed. Denver has a much more challenging schedule than the Clippers, facing five top-four seeds (the Heat, Jazz, Lakers, Clippers and Raptors) and only two lottery teams (the Trail Blazers and Spurs).
THE NUGGETS' FULL 8 SEEDING GAMES SCHEDULE:
8/1: MIAMI @ 1 PM ET
8/3: OKC @ 4 PM ET
8/5: SAN ANTONIO @ 4 PM ET
8/6: PORTLAND @ 8 PM ET
8/8: UTAH @ 3:30 PM ET
8/10P: LAKERS @ 9 PM ET
8/12: CLIPPERS @ 9 PM ET
8/14: TORONTO TBD
— KENDRA ANDREWS (@KENDRA__ANDREWS) JUNE 26, 2020
There’s a chance the Clippers already will have the No. 2 seed locked up by Aug. 12, but the game could serve as a playoff preview, regardless.
On paper, the Clippers are clearly better than the Pelicans, Suns, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, Nets and Thunder. They should go something like 5-1 in those games. But five of the six teams — the Suns are a long shot — will be fighting for seeding and/or their playoff lives, so those games aren’t walk-overs by any means.
Though there are countless variables that can change between now and the start of the season, it’s reasonable to project the Clippers going somewhere between 5-3 and 7-1. At worst, they should go 4-4.
Again, COVID-19, injuries and player drop-outs will affect the games. We don’t have a fully crystallized picture yet. A lot can change between now and July 30, and a lot almost certainly will change once the games begin.
Ultimately, the Clippers are fortunate that they had already played one of the league’s toughest schedules, resulting in this condensed version being easier than that of most of their counterparts. Had the league entirely scrapped the previous remaining schedules, they could have potentially faced a much more difficult slate.
As long as the Clippers can go 5-3 in Orlando (including winning the Denver game) or 6-2 — assuming the Clippers and NBA can make it through the entire regular season without being shut down — the Clippers will be the heavy favorites to secure the No. 2 seed and position themselves opposite the Lakers in the Western Conference bracket.
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