In 2021, or even a year or two prior, the LA Clippers would have been seen as the team with the best offseason in NBA history. This was the time when Bradley Beal was scoring 30 points a night, Brook Lopez was on the NBA's All-Defensive team, and Chris Paul was extremely close to finishing in the top three in the MVP race, at age 35.
But, because the Clippers made these moves going into 2025-26, everyone is looking past what their impact will turn out to be due to age. In fact, they are all older and have physically declined since their most recent peak.
Thus, ESPN recently surveyed NBA insiders, who voted on various predictions. Picks were made for the best player now and in 2030, as well as a prediction on the team that will employ LeBron James, arguably the greatest player of all time, in 2026-27.
Near the end, ESPN revealed the teams that were voted to have the best offseason. This is where the term 'underrated' aptly describes everything the Clippers have done over the past few months, as they made the list but were at the very bottom, tied with the Los Angeles Lakers.
League insiders are clearly overlooking how impactful the Clippers' offseason additions will be
In ESPN's reveal of franchises ahead of the LA Clippers, the top spot was awarded to the Atlanta Hawks. They deserve it, as Atlanta's front office saw a wide-open lane in the Eastern Conference to clinch the first seed, and added Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Kristaps Porzingis, and Luke Kennard.
Furthermore, the Denver Nuggets came in second place, and the Houston Rockets took third. The Clippers could have been interchangeable with either team, but league insiders did not see it that way.
After the Rockets, the Clippers fell into the underrated category, as they were behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, who did not add anyone new, and in parallel with the Los Angeles Lakers, whose only prominent move was the signing of Deandre Ayton.
Moreover, LA did all they could, and between Clipper Nation and Lawrence Frank, the front office did a fantastic job. Unfortunately, Frank will only receive the recognition he deserves once the team enters contests as underdogs, and their newest additions are a significant reason why they ultimately emerge as winners.
Nonetheless, Clipper fans will hold onto this list as a receipt, and take another trip back to it a year later to see the depth of how these votes were proved wrong.