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The Clippers Had One Of The Greatest Comebacks Ever Last Night. Here’s How It Ended.

Well, we’ve had some time to sleep it off, but the Clippers’ comeback last night from 27 down late in the third quarter (or 24 down with eight minutes left; choose whichever deficit sounds more insane to overcome to you) to beat the Grizzlies 99-98 still leaves us in shock. Just look at the play-by-play. How did that happen? There was even a two-minute-plus stretch during those final eight minutes – when, again, the Clippers made up a 24-point deficit – in which they didn’t score at all. Of course, Memphis didn’t score during that time, either, so that left the door open just enough.

Looking back at how the comeback happened only makes it even more unbelievable, so we’re just going to stop talking about it now and show you how it ended: with a missed potential game-winning shot by the Grizzlies and one of the biggest celebrations you’ll ever see for winning Game 1 of a playoff series that didn’t involve a buzzer-beater. And the celebration was entirely justified. Video by CJ Fogler:

And to the victor go the spoils – specifically, talking to Craig Sager after the game and getting to make fun of his suit. Chris Paul (who came on in a big way in the second half) got the honors:

Really, one of Sager’s less outlandish efforts, but Paul was fired up. He had to say something, and Sager is one of the world’s easiest targets. Paul could have said just about anything there and we wouldn’t have blamed him – we’d have been completely out of our minds with joy in a similar situation. That’s why the most important thing Paul did there was acknowledge that while this was a crazy, incomprehensible, awesome game, it was only one game. The Grizzlies can still respond, but after that collapse, it won’t be easy.