DALLAS —
The Clippers arrived for their morning shootaround Friday expecting to see an all-gray court designed especially for the NBA’s In-Season Tournament awaiting. Instead, it was the Dallas Mavericks’ regular hardwood design, the result of what the league called a “manufacturing issue.”
When the Clippers left American Airlines Center late Friday, it was clear they, too, remain very much a work in progress — exciting in theory but faulty, so far, in application.
The final margin of the Clippers’ fourth consecutive loss, a 144-126 decision made closer by the spirited play of an all-reserve lineup that played the entire fourth quarter, doesn’t explain the gap between these teams on this night, nor the gap between who the Clippers are at the moment, nearly two weeks since trading for James Harden, and the championship contender they believe they can be.