Chris Paul Leaves Clippers-Thunder Game With Sprained Left Thumb, X-Rays Negative

Late in the second quarter of tonight’s Clippers-Thunder game, Chris Paul headed to the locker room with an apparent left hand injury. He hit his hand against Russell Westbrook on a defensive play and was visibly frustrated, kicking a chair on his way back to the locker room.

That reaction is what’s scariest—nothing makes Chris more frustrated at this point in his career than getting injured yet again, and the fact that he was so angry so quickly might indicate that he knows he got hurt. He was similarly resigned to his fate when he broke his hand in last year’s playoffs against the Portland Trail Blazers.

We’ll update as soon as the Clippers release CP3’s status.

UPDATE: The Clippers have officially designated Chris as OUT with a sprained left thumb. Obviously any injury hurts the team, but might let Clippers fans who were dreading another broken hand breathe a sign of relief. He won’t return tonight and we don’t have a timetable yet for any future games he might miss.

UPDATE: Rowan Kavner reports that x-rays were negative, so Chris Paul’s hand/wrist/thumb isn’t fractured. An MRI will likely be coming soon to determine the extend of the sprain and the duration of Paul’s absence.