Los Angeles Clippers guard Austin Rivers earned the respect of national viewers with a gutsy Game 6 performance against the Portland Trail Blazers on April 29. Sustaining a graphic facial injury just five minutes into the first quarter, he went back to the locker room, received 11 stitches, and re-entered the game to aid his shorthanded team. The Clippers would ultimately lose, but Rivers made it a last stand worthy of remembrance, putting up 21 points with eight assists through the throbbing pain and impaired vision.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo!