Deadspin | Deni Avdija, Blazers earn clutch win vs. Clippers for play-in positioning 
Apr 10, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) scores over LA Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) during the first half at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images Deni Avdija scored 15 of his game-high 35 points in the fourth quarter and helped fuel a crucial run as the Portland Trail Blazers powered past the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Friday, 116-97.
Portland (41-40) fell behind early in the fourth quarter of Friday’s clash, a pivotal matchup for positioning in the upcoming Western Conference play-in. Yet their rally left the Trail Blazers in the eighth slot in the West, pegged for the 7 vs. 8 game in the play-in, while the Clippers are now in the ninth slot. Each team has one game left in the regular season.
Kobe Sanders hit a jumper in the first minute of the period that gave Los Angeles (41-40) an edge after trailing by as many as 20 points in the first half.
The Clippers’ advantage was fleeting, however.
The Blazers answered with the next 11 points, holding Los Angeles without a field goal for almost seven minutes.
Brook Lopez’s 3-pointer ended the Clippers field-goal drought and moved Los Angeles to within six points with 4:36 remaining, but Portland unleashed another run of 10-0. Avdija capped the win-sealing spurt with a step-back 3-pointer, his only made triple of the night.
The Blazers struggled to connect from deep for much of the night, going 12 of 39. But successfully getting to the foul line for 30 made foul shots on 35 attempts and 24 points converted off of 17 Clippers turnovers helped Portland make up the difference.
Portland also dominated the glass with a 60-39 rebounding advantage. Both Donovan Clingan and reserve big man Robert Williams III recorded double-doubles, adding 18 and 13 points to go with their 13 and 10 rebounds.
Kris Murray came off the bench to add another seven rebounds and 10 points.
Kawhi Leonard led Los Angeles with 24 points and eight rebounds. Lopez knocked down five of his 11 attempted 3-pointers on the way to 21 points, and Darius Garland finished with 16 points and seven assists.
Jordan Miller scored 15 points, accounting for most of the Clippers’ 21 bench contributions. Bennedict Mathurin was limited to just five minutes and went scoreless.
–Field Level Media
#Deadspin #Deni #Avdija #Blazers #earn #clutch #win #Clippers #playin #positioning
Apr 10, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) scores over LA Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) during the first half at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images Deni Avdija scored 15 of his game-high 35 points in the fourth quarter and helped fuel a crucial run as the Portland Trail Blazers powered past the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Friday, 116-97.
Portland (41-40) fell behind early in the fourth quarter of Friday’s clash, a pivotal matchup for positioning in the upcoming Western Conference play-in. Yet their rally left the Trail Blazers in the eighth slot in the West, pegged for the 7 vs. 8 game in the play-in, while the Clippers are now in the ninth slot. Each team has one game left in the regular season.
Kobe Sanders hit a jumper in the first minute of the period that gave Los Angeles (41-40) an edge after trailing by as many as 20 points in the first half.
The Clippers’ advantage was fleeting, however.
The Blazers answered with the next 11 points, holding Los Angeles without a field goal for almost seven minutes.
Brook Lopez’s 3-pointer ended the Clippers field-goal drought and moved Los Angeles to within six points with 4:36 remaining, but Portland unleashed another run of 10-0. Avdija capped the win-sealing spurt with a step-back 3-pointer, his only made triple of the night.
The Blazers struggled to connect from deep for much of the night, going 12 of 39. But successfully getting to the foul line for 30 made foul shots on 35 attempts and 24 points converted off of 17 Clippers turnovers helped Portland make up the difference.
Portland also dominated the glass with a 60-39 rebounding advantage. Both Donovan Clingan and reserve big man Robert Williams III recorded double-doubles, adding 18 and 13 points to go with their 13 and 10 rebounds.
Kris Murray came off the bench to add another seven rebounds and 10 points.
Kawhi Leonard led Los Angeles with 24 points and eight rebounds. Lopez knocked down five of his 11 attempted 3-pointers on the way to 21 points, and Darius Garland finished with 16 points and seven assists.
Jordan Miller scored 15 points, accounting for most of the Clippers’ 21 bench contributions. Bennedict Mathurin was limited to just five minutes and went scoreless.
–Field Level Media
![Brandon Aiyuk’s 49ers divorce keeps getting uglier Brandon Aiyuk’s war of words with the San Francisco 49ers reached new heights on Tuesday.In a video posted to social media, Aiyuk blasted the organization as “stupid” for paying him, and “mad” at themselves for how the team was handling the situation.The video came after Aiyuk posted one over the weekend, where he called the 49ers “little-ass boys” who needed to “stop running from the bill.”The two videos are the wide receiver’s first lengthy public comments since the team placed him on the reserve/left team list back in December of last year. Aiyuk has not played in a game for the 49ers since midway through the 2024 season, when he suffered a torn ACL.Prior to the 2024 campaign, Aiyuk was a hold-in during training camp until he agreed to terms with the team on a new four-year extension worth up to $120 million.Head coach Kyle Shanahan, along with general manager John Lynch, continue to assert that Aiyuk has played his last snap for the 49ers. Speaking at the team’s end-of-season press conference in January, the coach indicated he had lost contact with Aiyuk, going on to say that “eventually you understand that it’s not going to change and you’ve got to move on with your football team.”On that January day, Lynch explicitly said that Aiyuk had “played his last snap with the Niners.”Then at the end of March at the league’s annual meetings, Shanahan maintained that stance, but did not put a timeframe on a resolution.“I don’t have a date for it, but I know eventually it’ll resolve itself,” Shanahan said in March. “Hopefully, we could get something for [him]. And I know we’re in no rush to do that. You’ve got to do what’s right for the Niners, and you’re not trying to hook up any other team as fast as you possibly can. Hopefully, we can get something for that, and it’ll take care of itself.”As far as what that resolution looks like, many believe Aiyuk will find a home with the Washington Commanders. Aiyuk played with Jayden Daniels at Arizona State, and over this past weekend did share a photos of himself wearing a Commanders hat.However, he is still technically under contract with San Francisco through the 2028 season. And while the 49ers did void the guaranteed money he was owed for 2026, the guaranteed money Aiyuk is owed for 2027 is still on the books.NFL insider Ian Rapoport addressed the situation on Monday.“First of all, here’s what the San Francisco 49ers would like: They have his rights, he’s not due any guaranteed money because he forfeited that by not showing up to his rehab,” said Rapoport. “So, they would like to trade him, probably to the Commanders, with his old friend Jayden Daniels and an organization that obviously knows him well, considering (Commanders general manager) Adam Peters was in San Francisco, and all that.“What the Commanders would like to do is sign him without having to trade him. … We’re in a situation where nobody wants to move at all. They’re all staring at each other. There’s really no deadline to make a move at all. So, until and unless everyone gets tired of Brandon Aiyuk sending Instagram messages, this is going to be a storyline that takes us through the summer.”Happy offseason, everyone. #Brandon #Aiyuks #49ers #divorce #uglier](https://i1.wp.com/platform.sbnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/06/gettyimages-2183567424.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C0%2C100%2C78.534031413613&w=1200&ssl=1 "Brandon Aiyuk’s 49ers divorce keeps getting uglier Brandon Aiyuk’s war of words with the San Francisco 49ers reached new heights on Tuesday.In a video posted to social media, Aiyuk blasted the organization as “stupid” for paying him, and “mad” at themselves for how the team was handling the situation.The video came after Aiyuk posted one over the weekend, where he called the 49ers “little-ass boys” who needed to “stop running from the bill.”The two videos are the wide receiver’s first lengthy public comments since the team placed him on the reserve/left team list back in December of last year. Aiyuk has not played in a game for the 49ers since midway through the 2024 season, when he suffered a torn ACL.Prior to the 2024 campaign, Aiyuk was a hold-in during training camp until he agreed to terms with the team on a new four-year extension worth up to $120 million.Head coach Kyle Shanahan, along with general manager John Lynch, continue to assert that Aiyuk has played his last snap for the 49ers. Speaking at the team’s end-of-season press conference in January, the coach indicated he had lost contact with Aiyuk, going on to say that “eventually you understand that it’s not going to change and you’ve got to move on with your football team.”On that January day, Lynch explicitly said that Aiyuk had “played his last snap with the Niners.”Then at the end of March at the league’s annual meetings, Shanahan maintained that stance, but did not put a timeframe on a resolution.“I don’t have a date for it, but I know eventually it’ll resolve itself,” Shanahan said in March. “Hopefully, we could get something for [him]. And I know we’re in no rush to do that. You’ve got to do what’s right for the Niners, and you’re not trying to hook up any other team as fast as you possibly can. Hopefully, we can get something for that, and it’ll take care of itself.”As far as what that resolution looks like, many believe Aiyuk will find a home with the Washington Commanders. Aiyuk played with Jayden Daniels at Arizona State, and over this past weekend did share a photos of himself wearing a Commanders hat.However, he is still technically under contract with San Francisco through the 2028 season. And while the 49ers did void the guaranteed money he was owed for 2026, the guaranteed money Aiyuk is owed for 2027 is still on the books.NFL insider Ian Rapoport addressed the situation on Monday.“First of all, here’s what the San Francisco 49ers would like: They have his rights, he’s not due any guaranteed money because he forfeited that by not showing up to his rehab,” said Rapoport. “So, they would like to trade him, probably to the Commanders, with his old friend Jayden Daniels and an organization that obviously knows him well, considering (Commanders general manager) Adam Peters was in San Francisco, and all that.“What the Commanders would like to do is sign him without having to trade him. … We’re in a situation where nobody wants to move at all. They’re all staring at each other. There’s really no deadline to make a move at all. So, until and unless everyone gets tired of Brandon Aiyuk sending Instagram messages, this is going to be a storyline that takes us through the summer.”Happy offseason, everyone. #Brandon #Aiyuks #49ers #divorce #uglier")
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