In all of sport’s great comebacks, fans will forever ponder the exact moment the tables turned. Whether it’s a rousing speech by the coach, injury to a key opposition player or your own team’s star player deciding enough is enough — though we’re often left never knowing quite what altered the momentum of the biggest matchups.
However, when the Los Angeles Clippers overcame a 25-point deficit in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Utah Jazz, it’s unlikely any supporter attributed it to any of the above.
For one, our star player Kawhi Leonard had gone down with an injury in Game 5 of the series, Donovan Mitchell was still on the court as the walls came tumbling down around his team, and Ty Lue doesn’t necessarily seem the type for a big emotional monologue to remind his guys who they are.