Clippers’ George will miss 2-3 weeks after suffering knee sprain

LOS ANGELES — The Clippers hoped this season would end with the unprecedented.

Those dreams of winning the franchise’s first NBA title seemed in jeopardy, however, because the team faces a reality that is all-too-familiar — a star player sidelined at a critical juncture.

The Clippers and Paul George appear to have dodged the worstcase scenario with his right knee injury, however. The team says that imaging determined that the All-Star forward suffered a sprained right knee and he will be re-evaluated in 2-3 weeks.

George’s right knee buckled, bending backward, after he landed with a defensive rebound with 4 minutes, 38 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s 101-100 loss to Oklahoma City at Crypto.com Arena.

As damaging as the loss was — it left the Clippers’ record at 38-35 for fifth place in the Western Conference but gave Oklahoma City, which is only 1 1/2 games behind, the season-series tiebreaker — the possibility of losing George had cast a pall over the team, afterward, the locker room deserted and the arena hallways nearly silent.

George left the arena on the back of a cart, his right leg straightened as he rode, accompanied by a member of the Clippers medical staff. He exited minutes after coach Tyronn Lue slowly had walked toward the same exit, his head down, while speaking with one of the team’s executives.

“I really hope he’s OK,” forward Nicolas Batum said late Tuesday, as the team remained unclear about the extend of the injury. “That’s my main concern right now.”