On this day three years ago, Chris Paul played his last game as a member of the LA Clippers as the team lost a first-round series to the Utah Jazz.
Three years ago seems like a millennia ago for LA Clippers’ fans. Believe it or not, just three years ago on this day we were watching Chris Paul play in his final game as a member of the Clippers, effectively ending the Lob City era.
Let me set the scene for you. The Clippers are without Blake Griffin for the remainder of the season due to a toe injury in game three. Despite the loss of Griffin, the Clippers managed to force game seven behind the leadership of Chris Paul. It all came down to one final game in Staples Center.
The Clippers starting lineup consisted of Chris Paul, J.J. Redick, Austin Rivers, Luc Mbah a Moute, and DeAndre Jordan. For the Jazz, the starters were George Hill, Joe Ingles, Gordon Hayward, Boris Diaw, and Rudy Gobert.
DeAndre Jordan actually led the Clippers in scoring, putting up 24 points. Despite that and 20 points from Jamal Crawford off the bench, the Clippers couldn’t pull off the series victory.
A couple of short months later, CP3 would request a sign-and-trade that would send him to Houston. Clipper Nation didn’t know the chain of events this would set in motion but instead were, for the most part, upset to see Lob City come to an end.
The Clippers received a haul for Paul which included Patrick Beverley, Lou Williams, and Montrezl Harrell among other players and picks. The trade of him and subsequently Blake Griffin in 2018 set the future for the team to get to their current roster consisting of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Chris Paul will go down as one of the greatest Clippers of all-time and helped this team have some of their best years, albeit still falling short of the ultimate goal. Take the time and watch the highlights above and remember just how much CP3 meant to all of us.