The Los Angeles Clippers erased a 25-point deficit to take down the Utah Jazz 121-115 on Tuesday night at Staples Center. Los Angeles finished the game on a 34-12 run.
And leading the comeback charge for the Clippers was Paul George, who returned to action after not playing since Dec. 22 due to a torn UCL in his right elbow.
George scored 34 points (10-of-20 from the field, 8-of-11 from the line), dished out six assists, and swiped five steals in the victory. He scored 20 points in the third quarter, and he made several key plays as a scorer, passer, and defender in the game’s final minutes.
Paul George is officially back! 🏀🔥 pic.twitter.com/6LHFaIEbWL
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) March 30, 2022
PAUL GEORGE.
TOUGH. 😤 pic.twitter.com/Yi0bUd88Nl
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 30, 2022
This pass from Paul George was INSANE
pic.twitter.com/HuVaHX6AQS— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) March 30, 2022
Paul George drawing in the defense and finding Luke Kennard for a clutch three? I used to pray for times like this.pic.twitter.com/BUA7ROVEGz
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) March 30, 2022
The Clippers also caught a break when Donovan Mitchell had a Chris Webber-esque moment with 10 seconds remaining and Los Angeles leading 119-115. Mitchell tried to call a timeout on an inbounds play, but the Jazz were out of timeouts. That resulted in a technical foul.
Donovan Mitchell with a Chris Webber moment. pic.twitter.com/EZmplWXUkl
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) March 30, 2022
Utah has now lost five straight games and currently would be the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference, but the 6-seed Denver Nuggets have the same record (45-31).
The Clippers are almost certainly locked into the West’s 8-seeding, which means a trip to the Play-In Tournament. However, with the return of George, Los Angeles is a very dangerous team that’s much better than their 37-39 record suggests, as Tuesday night showed.
Here’s a sampling of how the hoops world reacted to George’s return and the Clippers’ wild victory:
The Jazz were leading for 45 straight minutes and up as many as 25 points.
The Clippers ended the game on 34-12 run to comeback and the hand the Jazz their 5th straight loss. pic.twitter.com/yLWIZhbkvM
— SB Nation (@SBNation) March 30, 2022
Paul George in his first game of 2022:
34 PTS (20 in the 3rd)
6 AST
5 STL
6-9 3PIn 31 minutes. pic.twitter.com/rzuM45Ppmu
— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 30, 2022
Welcome back Paul George! pic.twitter.com/vIHLpURtWe
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) March 30, 2022
You would never guess this is Paul George's first game back. Just destroying defenders on this step-back pic.twitter.com/ixk7ZUhed1
— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) March 30, 2022
Could you imagine this Clippers team with Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Norman Powell?
— Farbod Esnaashari (@Farbod_E) March 30, 2022
the jazz look like the post-game six collapse clippers team that eventually had to get blown up
— jason concepcion (@netw3rk) March 30, 2022
The Clippers' biggest deficit in Game 6 vs. the Jazz was 75-50. LA came back to win that one.
The Clippers' biggest deficit tonight was 25 at 76-51. LA came back to win this one. https://t.co/nS8MFSB5nu
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) March 30, 2022
