Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Chauncey Billups just hasn’t been healthy enough this season to play many games for the Los Angeles Clippers, but the veteran Clippers guard did his part in the regular-season finale to help the Clippers gain a 112-108 victory over the Sacramento Kings, and the team will now take that No. 4 seed in the NBA West into the playoffs with plenty of momentum.
The Clippers are playing good basketball now, and it’s not a bad idea for them to draw from different sources, including Billups, who led the 2004 Detroit Pistons to the world title. He knows what it takes to win in these pressure situations.
Billups scored 17 points for the Clippers with more than 18 minutes of action in a rare starting role. He was 5-of-9 from the floor, 3-of-6 in 3-pointers and 4-of-4 at the free-throw line for 17 points.
He only saw action in 22 games this season and started each one. He averaged 19 minutes a game and shot 42 percent from the floor, 3.7 percent in 3-pointers and 93.8 percent in free throws. If you can get a lot of players contributing in the conference, the Clippers will be in excellent shape. He averaged 8.4 points and 2.2 assists per game.
The 15-year NBA veteran, at age 36, still has some talent the Clippers can use and may play more of a key role in the playoffs than fans might think. They will have a tough opening round series against the Memphis Grizzlies and could use a strong series from Billups.
It’s a series likely to go seven games. and players like Billups can use his experience to help the Clippers prevail.
