LOS ANGELES — The Lakers and Clippers will end the season just how it began — with a crosstown matchup at the Staples Center — but this duel comes with six months’ worth of perspective.

When the Clippers topped the Lakers in the season opener in October Tyler Eifert Jersey , there was plenty of optimism on both sides. The Lakers had just added point guard Lonzo Ball to run the show, while the Clippers rebuilt a roster around Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.

The biggest sign that it didn’t quite work according to plan for both teams is that Griffin was traded by the end of January and the Lakers shipped out Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. just over a week later at the trade deadline.

Both moves were made with the future in mind, and since future means seasons beyond this one, Tuesday’s all-Los Angeles matchup will close the door on unfulfilled expectations in Southern California for 2017-18.

Win or lose Tuesday, though, both teams already are optimistic about the future.

The Clippers remained in playoff contention deep into the season before succumbing under the weight of injuries and a daunting schedule. At 42-39, they have the security of knowing they will finish the season above .500 despite those injuries that affected all areas of the roster.

“I think our fans kind of connected with this group more than any group since I have been here,” coach Doc Rivers told the media after Monday’s defeat to the Pelicans. “I think our team and our crowd kind of identified with each other this year.”

The Lakers will not see the .500 mark, since they head into the final contest at 34-47. But a renewed commitment to defense helped them go on a 16-7 run at one stretch after the new year, and a sense of unity surfaced in the second half.

Not only did Julius Randle blossom under coach Luke Walton Ozzie Newsome Jersey , so did rookie Kyle Kuzma, who is now expected to weigh heavily in the plans moving forward, along with fellow youngsters Ball and Josh Hart.

“I think we all kind of know that can happen (with) the success we’ve had this year, growing and being a young core,” Kuzma said, according to the Los Angeles Times.

After moving on from Griffin, the Clippers signed a multi-year deal with scoring machine Lou Williams, who is the team’s leading scorer at 22.6 points per game. Williams will become the second player in NBA history to set a career high in scoring in his 13th season or later (Chauncy Billups).

Williams will also become the first player in NBA history to average more than 20 points for the first time in his career in his 13th season or later. And with a double-double in the finale, Jordan will tie Elton Brand for most double-doubles in team history at 265.

But in a sign of just how prevalent injuries were for the Clippers, they will finish the season with four point guards out of action: Patrick Beverley (knee) Hroniss Grasu Jersey , Avery Bradley (groin), Milos Teodosic (foot) and Jawun Evans (abdomen). Also out Tuesday is Danilo Gallinari (hand), who missed most of the year with multiple injuries.

Williams (ankle) and Austin Rivers (elbow) did not play Monday but are expected to see action Wednesday.

Ball (knee) and Kuzma (ankle) are listed as day-to-day. Isaiah Thomas (hip) is out, while Brandon Ingram (concussion) is day-to-day.

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Dante Fowler expressed little concern about his one-game suspension, his shoulder injury or his future with the franchise.

The 23-year-old Fowler was equally nonchalant about the progress he seemingly made in the past year.

”Did I go to jail?” he said following the team’s first training camp practice Thursday. ”There we go.”

Fowler spoke publicly for the first time since the NFL suspended him without pay for the season opener at the New York Giants, a one-game penalty for attacking a man in a parking lot near his hometown in July 2017.

Fowler eventually pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of battery, criminal mischief and petty theft. The case was closed in March, with Fowler sentenced to a year of probation and 75 hours of community service.

The NFL handed down its punishment last week.

”We really already knew it was going to happen,” said Fowler, who will be eligible to play Week 2 against New England. ”It’s a situation that happened last year so the NFL finally took it into their hands this year. We talked and they told me what it was going to be. I just appreciate them hearing me out Marquis Haynes Jersey , hearing my side of the story. It could have always been worse, so I’m going to just take this game and be ready when we come back for the Patriots.”

The suspension will cost him $214,000.

Missing additional games could cost him even more.

The Jaguars declined to exercise the fifth-year option in Fowler’s rookie contract in May, likely meaning the third overall pick in the 2015 draft will become a free agent after this season.

A career year could mean a lucrative deal elsewhere.

”Go out there and play as best as I can every Sunday,” he said. ”That’s it.”

Fowler has 53 tackles and 12 sacks in two seasons. He missed his rookie year after tearing a ligament in his left knee during the first day of a rookie minicamp.

He played in every game since his return, but mostly as a backup to Pro Bowler Yannick Ngakoue. The Jags apparently don’t view Fowler in the team’s long-term plans, which is why they declined to pay him $14.2 million in 2019.

His off-filed troubles are partly to blame.

The former Florida standout was arrested last year after confronting a 55-year-old man who made a comment about his driving. St. Petersburg police said Fowler exchanged words with the man before hitting him and knocking off his glasses. Fowler then stepped on the glasses before taking the man’s grocery bag and tossing it in a lake.

Fowler also was arrested in Miami Beach in March 2016 and charged with misdemeanor counts of assault against a police officer and resisting arrest without violence. The charges were later dropped. That arrest came a little more than two weeks after a video surfaced showing Fowler refereeing a violent fight between his girlfriend and an ex-girlfriend. He also has a long list of traffic violations.

”It is something where you have to go out every day and you have to prove (yourself) until you get to a level of consistency where there is trust,” coach Doug Marrone said. ”I think it is a matter of doing the right things each and every day, and we will see how it goes.”

Fowler’s health is his biggest concern these days.

He injured his left shoulder late last season and opened camp on the physically unable to perform list. Incapable of lifting weights for part of the offseason, Fowler lost some pounds. But much like everything else Kevin Zeitler Jersey , he doesn’t see it as a concern.

”Well, I’m actually big,” he said with a smile. ”I honestly think it won’t matter. It doesn’t matter. Weight does not matter with this one. I’m a straight dog. It don’t matter. Once I put on them pads, it’s a wrap. I’m just getting stronger. Coaches are looking out for me and being concerned and looking out for my health, so all I can do is just get stronger and you guys will know when I’m out there again.”

—

Womens Robert Golden Jersey ,