LOS ANGELES — Once again, it's wait 'til next year for the Clippers. It always is.
The team that made a habit of staging exhilarating second-half comebacks this season under the clever guidance of coach Tyronn Lue, that prided itself on clawing and scratching to remain competitive and earn the eighth-best record in the West even though Kawhi Leonard never played and Paul George missed a big chunk of the season, became the team that twice couldn't hold sizable leads when a ticket to the playoffs was on the line.
They had two chances to get past the NBA's contrived play-in format and earn a spot in the playoffs. Two chances to make one. They whiffed.
