In a series between two teams as talented as the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers, sometimes it's the crazy and unexpected that separates winner from loser. That's exactly what happened in the Spurs' 111-107 Game 5 win over the Clippers that gave them a 3-2 series lead.
The 5 strange plays that decided Clippers-Spurs Game 5
The Clippers and Spurs were battling in a typically heated playoff game. Then, a whole bunch of crazy stuff happened.
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This was a game that had it all: High-flying dunks, technical fouls, unexpected performances, last-minute gaffes, questionable officiating and public criticism of said officiating. With Game 5 looming as a pivotal turning point in the series, the Clippers and Spurs delivered. Whether it's a spry Tim Duncan boasting his discovery of the fountain of youth or Chris Paul reminding us he is the true Point God, this has been the series everyone hoped for.
All of that brilliance came together in Game 5, both teams flexing their strengths while trying to limit the other’s weaknesses. However, it was a game so close that some weird moments ended up mattering. Here were the five biggest.
1. Matt Barnes' goaltending
DeAndre Jordan’s correct basket interference call was most memorable, but there was a similar moment earlier in the game that cost the Clippers. In the second quarter, Clippers forward Matt Barnes was also whistled for offensive goaltending.
The replay showed that Barnes cleanly tipped the ball in legally, but referees wiped the bucket off the scoreboard anyway. Without any rule in place for reviewing that kind of call, Los Angeles was screwed out of two points. Clippers coach Doc Rivers didn't look thrilled after seeing the replay on the Jumbotron:
2. The CP3 technical foul
Rivers had some choice words for the league’s officials during his postgame conference, but he didn’t even mention the most questionable decision the referees made. In the fourth quarter, Paul received a crucial technical foul after seemingly tossing the ball to a referee following a Spurs make.
Touching the ball after a made basket usually qualifies as a delay of game, but rarely do players receive more than a warning for the violation. Paul received a technical foul, however, which leaves us wondering what else he might’ve done to earn the whistle.
Without the ensuing Spurs free throw, the game is tied when Jordan gets called for offensive goaltending. Instead, the Clippers were down one. Who knows what would have happened?
3. The Diaw/Crawford swing
This was a major turning point in the game. With about four minutes left in regulation, Clippers guard Jamal Crawford got an easy chance at the rim with the team trailing, 100-96. He missed, however, and Spurs forward Boris Diaw responded on the other end of the floor by nailing a huge three-pointer.
Instead of seeing the Spurs’ lead cut down to two points, the sequence ended with the Clippers down by seven. Los Angeles would battle back with a series of quick baskets from its star players, but the situation was radically changed by that five-point turnaround in a matter of seconds. Who knows how this game might’ve ended had Crawford nailed that shot to cut the lead to 100-98.
4. The Boris Diaw Show
Part of what makes San Antonio so dangerous is the possibility that one of their role players goes off on any given night. In Game 5, that was Diaw, who stepped up in the fourth quarter with a pair of clutch shots that only could’ve been made by the league’s chillest player.
First, there was the aforementioned three-pointer following Crawford’s miss. Then, this happened on the next possession:
A turnaround fadeaway late in a huge playoff game in front of more than 20,000 loud, opposing fans? No problem for Boris. He finished the game with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting in 24 minutes, but made arguably the two biggest baskets of the night.
5. DeAndre’s basket interference
And yet, after all that happened, the craziness peaked in the waning moments as the Clippers had a chance to take the lead. Trailing by one with six seconds on the clock, Blake Griffin drove to the bucket and fired up a layup, only to watch teammate DeAndre Jordan tip the ball in while it was still bouncing above the rim.
The referees immediately pounced on the basket interference call, stunning a Staples Center crowd that thought it had just seen a possible game-winning score. Instead, Jordan cost his team the bucket, and as a result, the game. Afterwards, the big man didn’t want to elaborate much.
“It was a dumb play,” said Jordan after the game. “I hit the ball. We did a good job fighting to put us in a situation to go up one. You can’t blame anybody on that but me. I tipped the ball.”
It was the craziest play in the game and a poetic way to end a night that was painted with strokes of the wild and unexpected. Now the Clippers trail in the series, 3-2, and will need to do something crazy on their own to get to the second round.
It’s certainly possible, though, considering everything we’ve seen so far.
★★★
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