It’s time for the LA Clippers to pivot and sell on this roster construction?
Heading into this season, without Kawhi Leonard, there weren’t high hopes for the LA Clippers to play a big role in determining the top of the Western Conference. Though, many believed that, with Paul George leading the way, the Clippers would at the very least be a playoff team.
However, through the first handful of games of the season, the Clippers have looked like everything but a playoff team. The Clippers are 2-4 through the first six games and have some really disappointing losses and performances so far.
Even though it shouldn’t be surprising that the Clippers are struggling right now, especially with no sense of when Kawhi will return, the hope was that this team would at least be able to stay someway afloat in the West. Until the reinforcements come.
So far it seems as if the Clippers could fall completely out of the playoff race before we even get a timeline for Kawhi. And that leads to bigger questions for the franchise moving forward.
Is it time for the Clippers to pivot, reshuffle the roster, and prepare for whenever Kawhi does return?
On the surface, you probably want to see this roster with a fully healthy Kawhi. After all, if he never gets injured in the playoffs last season, there’s a chance the Clippers make it to the NBA Finals instead of the Phoenix Suns.
Perhaps that was on the mind of the front office all offseason in trying to retain this roster construction.
Though, it could also be viewed as a flawed way of thinking. Last year was somewhat of a weird season and it would be unlikely if this Clippers team had that type of opportunity again.
Here are a few of the outliners that took place last postseason
- The Denver Nuggets were missing Jamal Murray
- The Utah Jazz lost Mike Conley Jr. and had a hobbled Donovan Mitchell
- The Los Angeles Lakers lost Anthony Davis and LeBron James was injured throughout the playoffs
If all three of those teams are healthy, there’s likely a different outcome and the Suns quite possibly don’t make it to the Finals. Heck, an argument could be made that they don’t even make it out of the first round – the Lakers held a 2-1 series lead before Davis was lost for the remainder of the series in Game 4.
Before the season, there was hope that this year wouldn’t turn into a lost season for the Clippers. Kawhi’s injury always made that a possibility. There’s hope Kawhi can return this season, but there’s also no guarantee of that.
If the Clippers continue to get buried in the West standings, though, there’s no reason for Kawhi to return. And if that remains to be the case, there’s a good chance that this season could end up being what the Clippers hoped it wouldn’t – a lost season.
At that point, you’d have to wonder if the Clippers are willing to give this roster construction another year before trying to reshuffle it. Or, if the wins don’t start piling up over the next few weeks, perhaps the roster is something the front office begins to start tweaking already.
Even though both George and Kawhi are locked in long-term, their window as a championship-worthy duo is only dwindling by the day. And with this latest injury to Kawhi, nothing is a certainty.
The Clippers are a team to watch over the next couple of months. It might be time for them to pivot to sellers on the season.