Austin Rivers isn’t 100%, but he still gives it
SALT LAKE CITY — For 26 days, Austin Rivers rested his strained left hamstring. He missed the last six regular-season games and the first four playoff games in the process so he could heal properly.
Then Blake Griffin went down with an injury to his right big toe in Game 3 against the Utah Jazz, and Rivers decided he had to return even if he wasn’t completely healed.
Rivers admitted that if it was still the regular season that he would not be playing. But he is, even starting Friday’s Game 6 at forward in place of Griffin and scoring 13 points.
“The recovery time really hasn’t been long enough for it to properly heal 100%,” Rivers said before the game. “If we lose, the season is over is how I kept looking at things. It’s like I’m just trying to hoop.
“If it was the regular season, I wouldn’t be in a rush. I’d probably be out another week.”
Rivers made his return in Game 5 at Staples Center and clearly wasn’t the same player he was during the regular season when he averaged 12.0 points on 42.2% shooting.
Rivers said he had no choice but to play right away.
“Listen, man, we need everybody right now with Blake out,” Rivers said. “If we lose and I don’t at least try to help my teammates, I’d feel bad. If I feel like I can play and help, I will. The last game I wasn’t 100% really out there. But I needed the game. So I’m just going to leave it all out there because there’s no more trying to adjust or get my rhythm.
“The whole focus is to go out and compete. I do not want my season to end without me at least helping my teammates out.”
Paul raises his game
Clippers Coach Doc Rivers was asked about guard Chris Paul and how he has elevated his game in the playoffs.
The numbers in this best-of-seven series show how much more of a force Paul has become in the playoffs against the Jazz than he was during the regular season.
In the first five games of the series, Paul averaged 27.0 points and 10.4 assists. During the regular season, Paul averaged 18.1 points and 9.2 assists.
He shot 53.1% in the first five postseason games and 47.6% during the regular season. Paul scored 29 points in Game 6. “Chris is a great player,” Rivers said. “And great players tend to be great in great moments. That’s why they are great players. They just have an ability to rise and go places where us mortals can’t go. Chris Paul has been one of those guys.”
Paul is also playing more minutes in the playoffs, averaging 36.4 compared to 31.5 during the regular season.
Rivers noticed that the extra minutes have taken a toll on Paul.
“We kind of knew it from the beginning right when Blake went out, we knew the biggest issue would be that,” Rivers said. “It’s not like Blake hasn’t been out before, so we had experience in that. Then it came true.
“With Blake on the floor, Chris does 60% of the ballhandling [and] Blake does the other 40%. When Blake is off the floor, especially those first five, six, seven minutes of each game, Chris does it all and that’s just too much. So, we’ll fix that.”