Ironically, the Los Angeles Clippers’ 2020/21 NBA season will start against their nemesis, the Los Angeles Lakers, in the worst possible way for them. The Lakers will receive their championship rings this Tuesday and the Clips will be there, witnessing first hand what their rivals could do without even having to face them.
It’s a very bad situation for them, but they are ready to see that and use it as motivation. That’s, at least, what Paul George will do when he attends the ring ceremony. The Clippers swingman is ready to start a new season where the team will have a lot of pressure on them following their fiasco of last season. PG13 knows he owes a lot to the Clippers and the fans and he’s trying to pay his debt this upcoming campaign.
“Dec. 22 won’t be the test of finding who we are, where we’re at…It’ll be a great ceremony for them…but [it ‘s] the start of the marathon…we had enough motivation if we [play] someone else or the Lakers,” George said.
Paul George on if Clips will be motivated seeing Lakers get rings: "Dec. 22 won't be the test of finding who we are, where we're at…It'll be a great ceremony for them…but [it's] the start of the marathon…we had enough motivation if we [play] someone else or the Lakers"
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) December 20, 2020
Contrary to the Clippers, the Lakers did everything people expected from them and they even exceeded expectations with their performance before and after the interruption of the league. In the end, they won the championship in the Orlando bubble while the Clippers blew a 3-1 lead over the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs. They carry a lot of pressure this season and PG is well aware of that.
Perhaps watching their crosstown rivals get their rings will serve as the perfect inspiration for them but only time will tell.
