Five years. Five entertaining but, always in the end, sobering years.
Chris Paul and Blake Griffin have been teammates since 2011, when David Stern vetoed the Lakers' trade for Paul and verified the Clippers' bid for him.
It's been exhilarating, it's been engaging but too often Lob City becomes Sob City.
Their latest postseason went asunder Friday amid frenzied Portland Trail Blazers fans. The Clippers put on their bravest face — 11 stitches around Austin Rivers' left eye after a rough collision — but bowed out of the playoffs with a 106-103 Game 6 loss.