Franklin’s Kennard on a roll for Clippers in NBA Playoffs

Kennard scored 18 point and made 7 of 9 shots from the field, including 4 of 6 3-pointers, on Tuesday in a 112-109 loss to the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. The Jazz lead the Western Conference semifinal series 1-0.

“Guys were just finding me,” Kennard told reporters Tuesday, “and it goes back to where we were attacking and just kicking it out to open guys. For me, it’s just being ready to shoot.”

In the first round against the Dallas Mavericks, Kennard didn’t see the floor in the first three games, played just over four minutes in Game 4 and then didn’t play in Game 5. He scored two points in 10 minutes in Game 6 and then scored 11 points and made 3 of 5 3-pointers in 14 minutes in a 126-11 victory Sunday in Game 7.

“We have guys that have made big plays all series for us,” Kennard said Sunday, “and it’s been like that all year. Just next man up. Whoever gets called, you have to be ready to go. They let me know to stay ready, and my mindset was just coming in and playing hard and doing whatever it takes to help us win because that’s what it’s all about. Doesn’t matter how many points you score. It’s just what you can do to help us win. So that was my mindset. That was everybody’s mindset tonight, and it was a big win for us.”

In his first season with the Clippers after three seasons with the Detroit Pistons, who drafted him with the 12th overall pick in 2017, Kennard averaged 8.3 points in 19.6 minutes per game. He shot a career-best 44.6 percent from 3-point range.

The Clippers earned the No. 4 seed and are playing the top-seeded Jazz, who won the regular-season series 2-1.

“They play physical,” Kennard said Tuesday, “so we definitely have to be more physical next game, get into our spots, get to the basket and keep attacking the paint. They are making us work. They are a physical team, but we have seen teams like that all year, teams that play hard and try to get up into you a little bit. It’s just talking to it with the team and seeing what we can do to get guys open, and it’s just staying ready, being ready and being physical on the offensive end, as well.

“I think we did a good job of sharing the ball, and we hit shots in the first half. We definitely missed some shots in the second half, but we’ve just got to keep trusting what we’ve built all year. We’ve got guys that can make plays and knock down shots.”