Telepeer

Clippers face ‘biggest game of the year’ in Portland

April 9, 2026

INGLEWOOD — As important, perhaps even crucial, as Friday night’s game is for the Clippers, All-Star Kawhi Leonard isn’t fretting. The two-time NBA champion has been through too many playoff scenarios to change his approach to a game that will determine the team’s playoff fate.

“Just play like any other game,” the stoic team leader said. “We got to do the same thing we do every night, which is make sure we don’t make mistakes, execute, rebound, play with energy, and bring aggressiveness. Same thing.

“I mean just go in the game and play. That’s all you could do. Relax and play.”

Sounds simple, like going on vacation, which is where the Clippers could be headed earlier than expected to if they don’t view Friday’s game in Portland with a sense of urgency.

“Friday is the biggest game of the year for us … and our guys know that and we’re up for the challenge,” Coach Tyronn Lue.

As it stands now, the Clippers (41-39) hold a one-game lead over the Trail Blazers (40-40). If the Clippers win, they will finish eighth in the Western Conference and Portland will finish ninth.

In the Play-In Tournament, the seventh and eighth seeds play each other, with the winner advancing to the playoffs. The loser gets a second opportunity to get into a first-round series by hosting a game against the winner of the game between the ninth and 10th seeds.

If the Clippers lose to Portland on Friday, they will need to win their season finale on Sunday at home against the Golden State Warriors and for the Blazers to lose their finale at home against the Sacramento Kings. If not, the Clippers will be the ninth seed and need two victories (one on the road) to advance to the postseason.

Lue understands the significance of the teams’ 81st game. He guided the Clippers through a similar situation last season when they needed to win 18 of their final 21 games, including defeating the Golden State Warriors in the season finale, to avoid the Play-In Tournament.

“Last year, every game was a playoff game, and the same thing has been for us the last three weeks of this season,” Lue said after Wednesday’s lopsided loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. “So, we got to get our rest. We got to get on the plane tomorrow with a focus on how we need to play, what we need to do. And I think if we execute our game plan, we’ll come back with a win.”

Portland interim coach Tiago Splitter told reporters Wednesday that Friday’s matchup “is the most important game of the season.”

The Clippers’ Jordan Miller doesn’t have much experience in crucial games, but the third-year guard knows enough that the Clippers need to have the right mindset against the Blazers, who won, 114-104, the last time they played nine days ago.

“We just need to bring energy from the jump, you know what I’m saying?” Miller said. “We started off slow against them last time and we almost crawled back, but that cushion that they had really helped them. So, I think it’s about just attacking these dudes with the right energy.”

Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. said the team needs to go into the game with the right mindset and come out with a victory. That, and “get the right amount of sleep, eat right, prepare right, watch your film.”

CLIPPERS AT BLAZERS

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

Where: Moda Center, Portland, Ore.

TV/radio: FDSN SoCal/570 AM

Orange County Register

News Details

Clippers face ‘biggest game of the year’ in Portland

CLIPPERS AT BLAZERS

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

News

CONTACT INFO

QUICK LINKS

SERVICES

CURRENT NEWS