This season will finish similar to the last, with a sidelined Blake Griffin on the bench in street clothes.
Only this isn’t the same old story for the Clippers.
The most critical offseason in the franchise’s history has come early, courtesy of news that Griffin will miss the remainder of the playoffs because of damage to the plantar plate on his big right toe.
Chris Paul and Doc Rivers promised the Clippers will be ready to take on Utah Jazz in Game 4 of their opening-round playoff series Sunday, but this is something more far-reaching than that.