Los Angeles Clippers Team Review

 

2021-22 Finish: 53-29

 

Season Highlight:

In a stacked Western Conference, the Clippers made there way to a competitive 53 wins, good enough for 5^th place. While a step below the top 4 teams in terms of depth and talent, the team boasted one of the most dominant two-way players the game has seen in Giannis Antetokounmpo, emerging stars Domantas Sabonis and R.J. Barrett and the reliable shooting rookie Corey Kispert. Despite injuries to point guards Ricky Rubio and Colin Sexton, the team had enough fire power to really concern their first-round opponent, the Memphis Grizzlies. This matchup of 4^th vs 5^th was all setup to be one of the most anticipated of the 2022 NSL playoffs.

Season Lowlight:

It�s fair to say the series didn�t go according to plan for GM Andrew and the Clippers. The Grizzles jumped out of the blocks with two dominant wins in Memphis. Giannis would put the team on his back during game 3 in LA, however the remaining games were blowouts, sending Giannis and the Clippers home in 5 games. Suddenly it was very clear that Giannis could not carry the team through the tough Western Conference playoffs without more help.

Trade:

Clippers send: Moussa Diabate
Clippers get: Cash

Andrew is seemingly one of the most hands off GMs in the league, with only the one trade completed for the entire season. We all know a huge trade followed the flip, but that will be discussed at length in the next team by team (and potentially a little later on in this article) This trade saw a second-round pick sold for cash, hard to judge until we see the kid play.

Free Agency:

Andrew doesn�t like to make many moves, and this extends to free agency, where we see only two players out of contract.

Ricky Rubio � UFA, A great player struck down by one of the worst injuries in basketball, Rubio is still recovering from an ACL and will be a tough one to keep after signing elsewhere in the NBA

Colin Sexton � RFA, another point guard out for the season due to a knee injury, Sexton has now recovered and will be a sign and trade for Andrew to deal with.

Star:

Giannis Antetokounmpo



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Giannis is currently the second most dominant player in the NSL. (Behind Lebron James) and at 27 years old, he is in his prime. To say he carried the Clippers as far as he could this past season is a huge understatement. 24 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and 1 steal a game on 65% shooting is incredible, game changing numbers by the man they call the Greek freak. But with little help from the rest of the roster, this man�s shoulders must be sore and possibly the reason he would eventually leave the Clippers via a monster trade.

 

Flop:

The point guard�s knees

A little harsh to blame two guys for getting injured, but gee wiz the Clippers entered the season with one of the best Point Guard rotations in the league in Ricky Rubio and Colin Sexton. To only get 49 combines games from these two guys really derailed the Clippers season and robbed Giannis of two very handy guys to not only get him the ball but help carry some offensive load. Had these two guys not gone down, it may have completely changed what happened in the playoffs and potentially the direction of the team. A real sliding doors moment.

 

Draft Grades:

#17 � Jalen Williams
#22 � Tari Eason

#52 � Moussa Diabate

Williams was judged as a A+ pick, a draft riser in the NBA who I absolutely love, this guy brings it on both ends, is crafty, athletic, and versatile. I couldn�t agree more that Andrew nailed this pick.

Eason was judged as a A+ pick, a mini slider in our league and another guy I love. Eason is one of my absolute favourite players in this draft, a combo forward who seemingly will do whatever it takes to improve and win. He will be one of the steals of the draft in my opinion.

Diabate was judged as a B pick, an energy big man who was quickly dealt to the Timberwolves for cash. No real loss here for the Clippers.

 

 

The Future:

Well, the future looks completely different in Los Angeles now, while the other LA team will win more games next season, I believe this Clippers team will lose more. A monster trade which saw Giannis depart for multiple future first round picks and two extremely high lottery talents in Paulo Banchero and Bennedict Mathurin has completely changed the direction of this franchise. Current owners of their 2023 1^st, you would think Andrew might try and lose as many games as possible this season. But will Sabonis, Barrett and some eager to prove themselves rookies get in the way of that?

C: Domantas Sabonis / Daniel Theis / Usman Garuba
PF: Paulo Banchero / PJ Washington / Tari Eason

SF: Kelly Oubre / Jalen Williams / Trey Murphy / Duncan Robinson

SG: R.J. Barrett / Bennedict Mathurin / Corey Kispert
PG: ? / ?