The Los Angeles Clippers since early 2010s have always been a team built to compete for the title. However, they just could not get one despite the acquisition of star players.
They ramped their campaign up in 2019 when they decided to acquire Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Still, all efforts went into naught.
What was the closest the Clips got to a championship? For head coach Ty Lue, it was in 2021.
“I thought that was a special year… If we had stayed healthy, I thought we had a really good shot of winning a championship,” he said as quoted by Clippers reporter Farbod Esnaashari.
Lue got something here. That year, it felt like the trophy was for anybody’s taking. It eventually came home to the Milwaukee Bucks who beat the Phoenix Suns in six games.
Clippers stars were at their best that season. Leonard was named to the All-NBA First Team and All-Defensive Second Team. PG was on the All-NBA Third Team.
The problem was only PG was able to stay healthy in the playoffs.
The Clippers beat Dallas in the first round, needed just six games to beat Utah Jazz in Round 2. Without Leonard, they fell to the Phoenix Suns in six games.
Kawhi Leonard injury update from Clippers
Four years on, the Clippers are still dealing with the same problem when it comes to Leonard.
The two-time NBA champion and two-time Finals MVP hasn’t seen NBA minutes this season and according to Lue, he will not join the team’s away games.
The good news is that he is recovering well.
“He felt good. He looked good. The swelling was down… It was just a setback. That was unfortunate,” he said before their game against the Toronto Raptors.
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