2. Play for Now? Or Play for the Future?
Pending a Donovan Mitchell-esque explosion from Gilgeous-Alexander or Robinson, the Clippers aren’t contending in the West this year. So that begs the question, do the Clippers keep trying to push for playoff spots? Or try to continue to get lottery picks and hope a big name free agent comes in the 2019 or 2020 summers?
Clippers management has made it very clear that they have no intentions of tanking and are trying to actively construct a roster to compete. This was made obvious by re-signing both Bradley and Harrell to two-year deals.
There are arguments to be made for both sides and it really does seem as though Clipper fans are torn. Any Tweet stream I see regarding a player signing or team movements are filled with both positive and negative reactions.
The argument for tanking revolves around the fact that the Clippers are not going to make any huge playoff push this season. They could sneak into the 7th or 8th spot but doing any damage in the Western Conference is super unlikely. In today’s NBA, a constant theme seems to be that if you are not contending for a championship, you should be tanking. I personally am not a big fan of this M.O. at all but trusting the process has done wonders for the Sixers and taking a few years off of contending worked well for both the Lakers and Celtics. Do I think the Clippers could replicate this? Maybe. Do I want to see it? Absolutely not.
2018-19 will be a critical season for the Clippers future. If this team gels, stays healthy and wins games, then they will probably try to keep them intact. With Tobias Harris available for the max next summer, a year left on Marcin Gortat and Patrick Beverley’s deals and the Clips having over $58 million in cap space next summer, the team could look quite different next summer.
In my opinion, I think that the answer to the question above is that the Clips are playing for both the future and the present. As mentioned above, the Clips will have the most cap space to work with in the 2019 offseason of ANY NBA team. With L.A. being an FA destination just based on the market, and with some exciting young pieces on their team, I fully expect the Clippers to make a run for, and get a big-name FA. Whether it’s Los Angeles resident Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis or Klay Thompson, the possibilities are huge.
The Clippers have it right. They have built a competitive roster for the 2018-19 season but also set themselves up well for going all-in in 2019 or 2020. I look for this season to be a great gauge of future talent. Whether that’s the blossoming of SGA, Harris proving he’s max worthy or Gallinari finally being a healthy member of any team, the 18-19 season will be an important one for the future of this franchise.
Next Up: Has Doc Rivers Learned His Lesson?
