Paul George hopes he can return as Nicolas Batum, Kawhi Leonard carry Clippers over Bulls

Paul George doesn’t know when he will be ready to return from his sprained right knee, “but I’m gonna do whatever I can do to shorten the process,” the All-Star forward said on his podcast.

His Clippers also are not in any position to make long-term plans — but they’re trying to do whatever they can to extend how long they are playing, just in case a return is possible.

In their third game since George injured his leg, and with Kawhi Leonard back in the lineup after taking an elbow to his face two nights earlier, the Clippers pushed past Chicago 124-112 on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena to keep their tenuous hold on a first-round playoff series.

With two games in Memphis and a third road game in New Orleans coming this week, the Clippers (40-36) have far more work to do to avoid the play-in tournament, given how densely the Western Conference standings remain packed. But two nights after a forgettable, 21-point blowout loss to New Orleans, the Clippers were instantly rejuvenated by new starterNicolas Batum, whose efficiency carried over throughout the roster. Batum made a season-high eight three-pointers and scored 24points. He hit three of the triples during a third quarter in which the Clippers pulled away from the Bulls (36-39), who beat the Lakers the day before, by outscoring them by 15.

George did not suffer ligament damage in the knee, and surgery is not needed, the team believes.

“I don’t know when that [return] date is, but the last thing I can do is not be involved with what’s going on because who knows how long injuries take,” George said on an episode of “Podcast P” that was released Monday morning but was taped late last week.

George said he plans “to attack rehab like it’s practice,” a saying he credited to Kobe Bryant.

Nonetheless, reinforcements are coming soon. Backup guard Norman Powell is expected to play during the road trip for the first time since he injured his left shoulder March 2. Coach Tyronn Lue said he will use a nine-man rotation upon Powell’s return.

“We need him back. We need his juice. We need his scoring,” Lue said of Powell, who had become a sixth man of the year candidate before the subluxation of his non-shooting shoulder by making 52% of his shots inside the arc and 41% of his three-pointers while possessing an ability, unique on the roster, to draw shooting fouls.

Clippers forward Norman Powell in the second half of a game in Denver.

(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)

George’s knee bent backward upon landing last Tuesday while he battled Oklahoma City’s Luguentz Dort for a rebound. He described feeling “throbbing” pain.

“The only thing going through my mind was: ‘I hope I didn’t tear no major s—. I hope I didn’t blow anything,’” George said. “I was like: ‘Damn, is this it? Is this what it feels like when you tear your ACL, when you tear your MCL. Is this that injury right here?’”

Though one of the podcast co-hosts, Jackie Long, said “dirty player” in reference to Dort, George said he didn’t believe Dort was trying to hurt him.

“I don’t think what he did was malicious. He wasn’t trying to hurt me,” George said. “He was just trying to play hard. He can get wild at times, but he’s a hard worker, plays hard and was trying to get extra possessions.”

George said he has watched the Clippers’ games closely to remain engaged. If he watched Monday, he saw a reunion of Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley, the longtime combatants turned Lakers teammates this season before both were traded in February.

Last month, as the Clippers decided how to fill their final roster spot, the team considered both guards before ultimately signing Westbrook. The two embraced before tipoff, then Westbrook opened the game by making a jump shot while drawing a foul on Beverley — and celebrated with his “rock the baby” gesture.

It was part of the fast start Lue asked for after the Clippers fell behind early in their two previous games following George’s injury. It was also a start that featured Batum in place of Marcus Morris Sr., who was sidelined by an illness. The combination of Batum, Westbrook and Eric Gordon had been used sparingly before Monday.

“Tonight, we get to see more of it, and going forward,” Lue said before tipoff. Those two words could herald a significant change. Midway through the game, a report by Clutchpoints indicated that Lue will stick with Batum as his starter, and Robert Covington as the backup forward, through the rest of the regular season, likely squeezing Morris.