Wilkins Hangs a One-Point Loss on Clippers With 3 Seconds Left

It seemed as if he was suspended in mid-air forever, a “Human Highlight Film” in stop-action. There was Dominique Wilkins, calmly holding the ball aloft indefinitely while James Donaldson frantically waved his hand in his face.

Just when it seemed Wilkins could stay airborne no longer, he launched a delicate eight-foot jumper with three seconds left that hit nothing but net to give the Atlanta Hawks a 91-90 win over the Clippers Sunday night before 8,532 at the Sports Arena.

When Wilkins went up for the shot, there were five seconds left. When the Clippers took the ball out of the net and called a timeout, there were three seconds left. Unaccustomed as they are to being involved in close games, the Clippers still had a good chance to win. But Norm Nixon’s last-second jumper from the baseline banged off the front rim.

After the loss, the Clippers’ 33rd in 54 games, they were left shaking their heads and marveling at Wilkins incredible hang-time ability.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said the 7-2 Donaldson. “He just hung up there forever. I wasn’t trying to block his shot, just change the direction of it. At first, I thought he would take it all the way and throw it down. It was a great play.”

What Donaldson feared most--a slam dunk attempt--was what pleased Atlanta Coach Mike Fratello the most because it didn’t happen. Around the NBA, Wilkins is known for his dunking prowess, and that reputation was enhanced last weekend when he won the slam-dunk competition at the All-Star game.

Wilkins made three spectacular dunks Sunday, but the rest of his game-high 36 points came on more conventional shots.

“They call Dominique the Human Highlight Film and everyone thinks all he can do is dunk,” Fratello said. “It’s a cross he has to bear. But I hope now that they will appreciate the other things he can do. Two years ago, he couldn’t do a lot of these things.”

Two years ago, perhaps, Wilkins would have tried to jam the ball down Donaldson’s throat in that situation. But when it came to the game-winning shot, Wilkins simply gathered a pass from guard Randy Wittman in the key and pulled up for the jumper.

“On that last play,” Wilkins said, matter of factly, “I took my best shot.”

The artistic merit of Wilkins’ game-winning shot was somewhat lost on Clipper Coach Jim Lynam, whose team could have pulled even with fourth-place Seattle if it had won.

“He made a great shot,” said Lynam in a typical understatement. “I thought James had a chance to block it, but he stayed up there that extra half-second. That made a difference.”

Immediately after Wilkins’ shot fell through the net, Lynam was thinking about how the Clippers would handle their game-winning shot attempt. He set up a play in which Nixon and Junior Bridgeman both came off screens.

Marques Johnson, who inbounded the ball from just inside half-court, saw that Wilkins was draped over Bridgeman. So, he flung a pass to Nixon in the corner. Under heavy pressure, Nixon’s desperation shot wasn’t even close.

“It looked like Norman had a decent shot, but he left it flat,” Lynam said.

Before Wilkins’ shot, Bridgeman gave the Clippers a 90-89 lead with six seconds left on a shot that seemed to hang in the air as long as Wilkins did. With Wilkins in Bridgeman’s face near the top of the key, the Clipper swingman faded back and released a high-arc shot that also hit nothing but net.

The Clippers were understandably downtrodden afterward. But they seemed depressed not because of Wilkins’ shot but because they blew another comfortable lead.

Friday night in Utah, the Clippers blew a 13-point first-half lead and lost to the Jazz. Sunday, they had a 50-40 halftime lead and saw it dwindle throughout the third quarter. By the start of the fourth quarter, they found themselves trailing, 68-67.

Led by Nixon, Bridgeman and Rory White, the Clippers were able to exchange lead with the Hawks all through the fourth quarter before losing i again at the end.

Donaldson, who has assumed a more prominent role now that Bill Walton is on the injured list with right ankle problems, led the Clippers with 24 points (20 in the first half). The Clipper also received 16 from Nixon and 14 each from Bridgeman and Johnson. Derek Smith, the club’s leading scorer this season, was held to a season low seven points.

Eddie Johnson added 16 points and Cliff Levingston 13 for the Hawks, who left Los Angeles with a split after losing to the Lakers Friday night.

Clipper Notes Center Bill Walton had his injured right ankle examined again by Dr. Tony Daly before Sunday’s game. Afterward, it was decided that Walton would be placed on the injured list, meaning he will miss at least the next five games. Clipper management met after Sunday’s game to decide on a replacement for Walton. The earliest Walton can return is Feb. 27 against Houston at the Sports Arena. . . . Walton has missed seven of the last eight games with the injury. He played six minutes against Golden State Wednesday before leaving with more soreness.