Rowan Kavner
SHANGHAI, China - The Clippers went from missing two guards in the first game in China to potentially having both back for the second game.
Head coach Doc Rivers said Chris Paul (fractured finger) and Austin Rivers (mouth trauma) both practiced Tuesday morning in Shanghai and should be available for Wednesday’s game against the Hornets.
“They both played very physical today in practice, so that was good to see,” Doc Rivers said. “That’s what I was trying to decide. If I thought they were shying away from contact, I wouldn’t have played them tomorrow, but they both played normal.”
Austin Rivers had some teeth knocked out as he took an elbow to the mouth during a scrimmage early during the China trip. A day later, Paul fractured his left finger playing defense in practice.
As bad as the injury situation looked then, with both players missing the preseason game in Shenzhen, it appears things are looking up for the Clippers. Initially, Austin Rivers thought he’d need to wait until Thursday to be reevaluated, but he healed quickly and was able to go through practice with contact Tuesday.
While both players are expected to play Wednesday, Doc Rivers said he’s going to wait until the day of the game to make a decision in case either player feels differently a day after practicing, but he liked the way both players looked.
There’s no question Paul, who was wearing a covering around just the injured left index finger, wants to be on the court in Shanghai and believes he will be.
“I hope so,” Paul said. “We go back and I’ll talk to our trainer. He’ll evaluate it and see if I can play. By all means necessary, I want to play. I’m so grateful to the fans here in China that have supported me over my career. The least I could do is get out there and play.”
Paul said the finger felt better Tuesday than it did Monday. Doc Rivers has plenty of experience handling the ball as a point guard, and he said there’s no adjustment to make with an injured finger on the off-shooting hand.
“The only adjustment is when it gets hit,” Rivers said, “and it’s going to get hit.” I told Austin and Chris, unfortunately for them, they have two injuries that you’re going to get hit in the face as a guard, so it’s going to hurt, and Chris is going to get hit in the hand, and it’s going to hurt. Other than that, there’s no way to brace for it.”