LA Clippers players answered questions of all kinds during Sunday’s Media Day, but if one thing stood out above the rest, it’s that these guys are ready to win.
Well, it’s finally here. The moment we’ve all been anticipating since April.
The LA Clippers are back. And this time, they’ve brought a few extra guys along for the ride. Maybe you’ve heard of them.
One is Kawhi Leonard, the reigning Finals MVP and one of the most talented players in the NBA. The other is Paul George, a finalist for the 2019 League MVP and… one of the most talented players in the NBA.
Leonard and George were added to the Clippers’ roster this summer when Leonard agreed to sign a three-year maximum contract with the organization following a stressful beginning to this year’s free agency period. George, on the other hand, arrived via trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder. The two wanted to play together and LA’s front office managed to get it done.
There haven’t been many times in franchise history that something like that has ever happened. In fact, this is almost certainly the first.
I don’t just mean that the Clippers pursued and landed two of the top players in basketball. I’m also talking about the fact that the organization went ahead and made the deal. Under previous ownership and front office direction, that sort of thing never would have happened. But with Steve Ballmer at the helm and Jerry West, Lawrence Frank and others taking control of the main decisions, there was hardly ever a question.
These new Clippers are all about winning, and they’re willing to do whatever it takes to achieve that goal.
LA’s roster is made up of guys that echo that same energy.
Patrick Beverley has never been one to make sacrifices on the floor and is undoubtedly one of the most fearless players in the game. Montrezl Harrell is a hard-nosed forward that paces the league in effort given. Lou Williams is a tireless scorer that’s capable of hitting just about any shot, at any time with any player in his face.
And that’s just a third of the roster.
Credit is also due to Head Coach Doc Rivers, who possibly pulled off the best coaching job of his career last season. Ask anyone before the season started if they thought the Clippers would make the playoffs in 2019, and they would point to the Los Angeles Lakers instead. But Rivers and Co. flipped the table and wound up giving the Golden State Warriors one heck of a fight in the first round of the postseason, while the Lakers sat things out for the sixth consecutive season.
All those guys are back, and then some. And at the Clippers’ Media Day, that energy was palpable, even through a computer screen. These guys know who they are, know what they’re capable of, and will soon know how they’re going to get through the regular season. Training camp begins tomorrow, and they can’t wait to get to work.
But before the Clippers get to work, let’s take a look back at this year’s Media Day and highlight some of the most important things that came from it.