LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Clippers may be without All-Star Paul George to start the postseason.
The team said Wednesday that George has a sprained right knee and he will be reevaluated in two to three weeks.
The Clippers began the day in fifth place in the Western Conference with a 38-35 record. They end the regular season on April 9 at Phoenix, a team they could meet in the first round of the playoffs, which begin six days later.
Even if George recovers before the playoff opener, he’ll need time to get back in the swing after not seeing game action for a couple of weeks.
George got hurt after going down hard late in a 101-100 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night. His knee made contact with the Thunder’s Luguentz Dort, who was going for a rebound with 4:38 remaining.
George needed help to leave the court, appearing unable to put any weight on his right leg, and once inside the tunnel he was carried to the locker room. He later left the arena on a cart with his right leg extended.
“Appreciate y’all,” George tweeted Wednesday.
Losing George for any length of time would be a major blow to the Clippers. He is averaging 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists for a team that has championship aspirations.
The Clippers did not practice Wednesday.
Asked Tuesday night how the team would adjust without George, Kawhi Leonard said: “Next man up. We’ve got a group of guys that still want to win and like to play basketball, so we’ll see what happens.”
The 32-year-old George has been out for extended periods of time in his career because of major injuries.
He sprained his right elbow in December 2021. A couple of weeks later, the Clippers said he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow. He was out for three months and returned to play the final few weeks of the season.
George had twin surgeries in his right and left shoulders in spring 2019 while with Oklahoma City. A few months later, he was traded to the Clippers and missed the first 11 games of the 2019-20 season while recovering.
Leonard suffered a partial ACL tear in his right knee during the 2021 Western Conference semifinals and didn’t return. The Clippers recovered and advanced to the conference finals for the first time in franchise history before losing to Phoenix in six games.
Leonard missed all of the 2022 season while recovering from the ACL injury. Without him, the Clippers went 42-40 and lost in the play-in tournament.
He has been mostly healthy this season, although the team regularly gives Leonard games off to rest as part of his load management.
The Clippers already are without reserve Norman Powell, whose shoulder injury could keep him out at least until next week.
76ERS: James Harden did not play Wednesday at Chicago because of left Achilles soreness.
Harden played almost 47 minutes during Monday night’s double-overtime loss to the Bulls, finishing with five points on 2-for-14 shooting and 12 assists. He is averaging 21.4 points and an NBA-high 10.8 assists in 53 games this season.
Forward Jalen McDaniels also was ruled out because of right hip soreness. McDaniels grabbed two rebounds and went scoreless in 8 1/2 minutes in Philadelphia’s previous game.
PELICANS: All-Star forward Zion Williamson will not return for at least two more weeks, jeopardizing whether he will be a part of the New Orleans Pelicans’ playoff push.
The Pelicans announced that Williamson, who has not played since straining his right hamstring Jan. 2, “has been cleared to return to on-court activities” and “will be re-evaluated in two weeks.”
The latest reevaluation will come April 5. New Orleans plays host to Memphis that night and will have two more regular-season games on April 7 and April 9.
WEDNESDAY’S GAMES
NUGGETS 118, WIZARDS 104: Nikola Jokic had 31 points and 12 rebounds as visiting Denver shook off a slow start to beat short-handed Washington.
Michael Porder Jr. added 21 points and Jamal Murray had 17 for Western Conference-leading Denver.
The Nuggets went 15 for 32 from beyond the arc and finished a season-high five-game trip with three wins. The trip began with a loss in Toronto that was the last setback in a season-worst four-game slide.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 25 points for the Wizards, who were without three-time All-Star guard Bradley Beal due to left knee soreness.
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