Jared Dudley

Jared Dudley predicts another early playoff exit for Blake Griffin and the Clippers

Published Mar. 31, 2017 12:47 p.m. ET

Brett Pollakoff

PHOENIX -- Suns forward Jared Dudley played for the Clippers during the 2013-14 season, and following a chippy, competitive contest against his former team Thursday, he had some strong opinions about how L.A.'s 2017 season would ultimately play out.

This is a critical year for the Clippers, perhaps more than any other in the franchise's recent history. L.A. has never advanced past the second round of the playoffs in five seasons with Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan as the team's core, and a sixth straight early exit from the postseason may result in significant changes -- especially with both Griffin and Paul set to become unrestricted free agents this summer.

But Dudley doesn't see anything different happening where the Clippers' playoff hopes are concerned.

“I played with them," Dudley told FOX Sports, following L.A.'s 124-118 win over the Suns. "They’ve kind of got a little bi-polar-type personality. For them, how they act on the floor and off the floor is different, and they’re real big on, when I played there, big frontrunners. So when they’re winning a lot, they talk a lot, they’re a little more chirpy and stuff like that.

"But for the most part, man, they just played well. Blake played well, but I’m almost guaranteeing — I’ll tell you this right now. They’ll be out of the playoffs real soon. Because I know them. Because mentally, that’s where they lack, and that’s where good teams can exploit it — especially Blake where, going against him, being so soft. Overall, you tip your hat to him, super-talented. But when it comes down to crunch time …”

It's worth noting that Dudley didn't have the best experience during his brief time in Los Angeles. He was dealing with a knee injury early on that he believed required some rest, but coach Doc Rivers wanted him to play through it, which understandably strained the relationship. Once Dudley was healthy later in the year, he fell out of the rotation and the Clippers traded him to the Bucks once the season was finished.

But that doesn't make his observations about his former teammates any less insightful.

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