Clippers Schedule: Five Most Intriguing Games of 2014-15 Season
By Micky Shaked
May 15, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) shoots against Los Angeles Clippers forward Matt Barnes (22) during the first quarter in game six of the second round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
What better way to forget Donald Sterling than kick off the season with a potential Western Conference Finals matchup? Not to mention it’s an early shot at revenge for the Thunder controversially knocking Los Angeles out of the playoffs last season.
There was the barrage of offensive fouls called on the Clippers in Game 6. And the Reggie Jackson out-of-bounds play in Game 5 followed by Chris Paul fouling Russell Westbrook behind the three-point line.
The Clips will hope to channel the energy that allowed them to make a 16-point fourth-quarter comeback in Game 4. Durant and Westbrook bring the Oklahoma City Thunder to the STAPLES Center eager to set the tone for another dominating regular season. But what they really want is to take advantage of a rapidly closing championship window with the current core.
The Clippers and Thunder split a high-scoring 2013-14 season series 2-2. On the strength of Jamal Crawford’s 36 points, Los Angeles dropped 125–its sixth-highest single-game total of the season–in Oklahoma City on February 23.