A Rivalry Renewed?
After dominating the Clippers for decades, the roles were reversed over the past few seasons. The Lakers were in a state of re-building and the Clippers were a constant playoff contender. Now though, the sides may be a little more even.
In case you didn’t hear, the Lakers grabbed a free agent by the name of LeBron James this summer. LeBron will make the Lakers an instant playoff favorite and likely a Western Conference Finals contender.
The Clippers, meanwhile, are in a weird state between rebuilding and trying to compete. They have brought in youth through the draft and in trades and if they were in the other conference, would likely be a guaranteed playoff team. This group won’t knock your socks off, but look to be a solid team that will give everyone trouble on every night.
Should the Clippers pull off getting Kawhi Leonard, this could start a significant rivalry between the two Los Angeles franchises.
The game today is the first time we get a taste of what an almost even rivalry could look like. It’s not much with no real big players on the Lakers side, but it’s something. Clippers fans better hope for a win so we can get our trash talking off now before The King steps onto the court.