Asked whether he had begun to look ahead at playoff matchups, or preferred certain first-round opponents, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue was still laughing while answering Tuesday after a win over Portland.
“I’d like to make the playoffs first, how about that?” the coach said. “Let’s get in first and then we’ll worry about the rest of the business later.”
The Clippers will be a playoff team. Since their midseason swoon entering March’s All-Star break, they have won 10 of 14 games behind the league’s second-best point differential and stand third in the Western Conference standings.