The Los Angeles Clippers have always been the bridesmaid, never the bride. They have played second fiddle to the Los Angeles Lakers for their entire existence and even their dominance over the Lakers in the past decade hasn’t changed that one bit. The Clippers were supposed to take over LA when Lob City came to town but they never won anything and looking back, they were a bit of a disappointment.
Once the Lob City Clippers broke up in 2017, the team ushered in a new era with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George as the headline acts in 2019. Expectations were incredibly high as Leonard was fresh off his second title and Finals MVP while George had just finished 3rd in the MVP voting in 2019. Armed with these two and a fine supporting cast, the Clippers were set to be a dominant force in the NBA, but even this iteration has failed to deliver a title or even a Finals appearance.
Zach Lowe Says This Is The Biggest Season In The History Of The Clippers Franchise
Their first season together saw a historic collapse in the Conference Semifinals against the Nuggets, as they blew a 3-1 lead, and then misfortune struck. The following season the Clippers made it to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in their history, but Kawhi Leonard had gotten injured in the Semifinals and they lost to the Suns in 6. Leonard didn’t play the whole of last season either as he recovered from his ACL tear but he is back now and the Clippers are as loaded as they have ever been after acquiring John Wall. Those expectations are rising again as many have called them the best team in the Western Conference and Zach Lowe stated that this is the biggest season in the history of the franchise.
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“This is the biggest season in the history of the Clippers franchise. This is year 4 of Kawhi and Paul George, now injuries have cut short a couple of them. The Bubble was an absolute disaster for them. This is it, this is the one. They are loaded. They are 15 deep, they are the deepest team in the NBA. They have both their stars back.”
You have to wonder if not this season, then when? They are clearly the deepest team in the NBA but something or the other has just always gone wrong for this franchise in the last decade.
Injuries might well derail them again next season, with Ramona Shelburne pointing out that Anthony Davis has played more games than Kawhi and George since 2019. No one has much faith in AD staying healthy next season but then what about the Clippers stars who have played even fewer games? LA will be hoping that the injury bug stays away from their stars for once in the 2022-23 season.
