INGLEWOOD, Calif. — There’s no black cat running around the Los Angeles Clippers franchise, no unnecessary fumigation needed to rechristen their sprawling new facility, which is sure to be the envy of owners who don’t have Steve Ballmer’s deep pockets.
It wasn’t even funny or appropriate James Harden missed the back end of two free throws that tied the game in overtime in the regular-season debut of the Intuit Dome on Wednesday night as the Clippers fell 116-113 to the Phoenix Suns.
It was only Game 1 of a new season for the Clippers, the first in a time where championship expectations were not on the tip of everyone’s tongue, a season where the margin for error is razor thin and a bit tight.
But that’s probably where the Clippers work best as they straddle two eras, a purgatory that’s the result of both choice and circumstance—a space they can dig themselves out of with some clever moves.
As Ballmer’s new playground opened its doors in Inglewood in the Clippers’ boldest, grandest attempt to maintain a footprint in Los Angeles, yet to step out of the Lakers’ massive shadow, it looks like last year would be the best chance to take such a trip.
After all, Russell Westbrook was on the roster, so was Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard was on his way to playing in most of his games because he was a Spurs.
Four marquee names, four LA-area kids who could carry the city’s flag and connect the neighborhood to the new building. A building that had kids shooting on court outside, before going through the actual turnstiles, a building that, for all its bells and whistles, was still confusing to navigate – which is usually the case when a new arena opens.
There’s the giant floor-length Jumbotron, which is a visual wonder, and all the technology meant to make things easier for fans to get back to their seats and back into the action as soon as possible.
But only Harden remains upright as a marquee player for the moment, because Westbrook was not ready for a reduced role and George was not ready for a salary that was less than the maximum. As for Leonard, it’s all to be expected as he’s in limbo following yet another offseason knee surgery and a confusing stint with USA Basketball that sent him home from being an Olympian this past summer.
With Harden, his numbers weren’t very vintage but he was able to muster 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in nearly 40 minutes, overcoming a two-for-11 start to score 24 in the second half.
He helped dig the Clippers from a sluggish start, where they trailed by 14, to an energetic comeback that brought the fans to life. Can he get back to being the every-night machine he was in Houston compared to the distributor and occasional scorer leader he’s been in his last three (!) stops, all since January 2021?
It seems unlikely but he is the best choice.
“We competed, we played hard. We all feel like it was a game we should have won,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “There’s no questioning how hard we played. How fit we were. Overall, I thought our guys did a good job competing.”
As for Harden’s free-throw miss and later, fumbled inbounds pass as the Clippers tried to tie the game in overtime with a 3-pointer, Lue said his team was “in perfect position” to win, but wouldn’t lament. too much in one single moment.
The building had its moments, especially when Ballmer went to a section known as “The Wall,” where fans are on their feet the entire game, going through chants and playful jabs at the opposing team, as the conglomerate is placed behind the a basket nearby. the visitor’s side.
“The wall is crazy. That’s our sixth man,” Lue said. “They are in the game. I think they made (Kevin Durant) miss two free throws in a row. We will need that. It was good to see.”
Ballmer jumped on the microphone to welcome the fans to the Intuit Dome before the game ended, and sat in animated misery when Harden’s free throw went awry — not too long after Kevin Durant hit a vintage high-arching jumper over two Clippers, including by Harden. who came to help.
“Yeah, K made some, some tough shots, especially that shot in the fourth quarter when I was trying to contest it, and he still, I don’t know how he did it,” Harden said half-admiringly, half-surprised. .
“History, you know, Inglewood, Intuit Dome, the fans came and they showed up and showed,” Harden said. “And we were just, you know, we got the short end of the stick. But I think they gave us great, great energy tonight.”
Lue continued to allude to the effort, which represents a sea change in philosophy with that organization. No offense, this is a test team right now that will have to rely on wildcards like Kai Jones to develop, or Derrick Jones Jr. or Terance Mann to take a next step to keep the Clippers afloat.
That element starts with Harden, however, who is not surrounded by preseason or offseason controversy for the first time in a while. Not that it deserves applause, but it’s worth noting that’s where he sits, and he’ll be counted on even more to produce given the roster uncertainty.
“We need him to be special until Kawhi comes back,” Lue said.
There was no hint of irony in Lue’s words, because no one knows when Leonard will return. People will say that he is doing a great job with rehab and that he hasn’t suffered any setbacks – a positive sign to say the least.
But even with Leonard’s collective eye culture and his many injuries, it helped the Clippers pick a path in the interim.
For the Clippers, this is who they have to be now. Their ambitious gambit to grab Leonard and Paul George back in the summer of 2019 — George was an MVP Finalist in Oklahoma City and Leonard dragged his leg and the Toronto Raptors to an improbable championship — was more than worth it.
The ending was ultimately unsatisfying, even with only one conference final to show for it and all those picks and pick trades owed to the Oklahoma City Thunder. But it was an opportunity the Clippers had to take because it forged an identity, or at least the expectation of one.
They’ve been a major franchise for over a decade now, after years of being the joke around the league. Dating back to Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, they’ve been on the national stage for a long time, even when the Lakers were struggling in the desert. But beyond the beauty of the Lob City era, there wasn’t much left.
But the league had to see how this iteration treated its players, like Leonard and George, and later, Harden. Having this brand new facility shows the commitment the organization has to be on its own, even as the Lakers are probably the biggest brand name in sports but certainly the NBA.
Now even as Harden ages out of being a 48-minute supernova and Leonard remains an unknown, the Clippers can be a target for the next crop of free agents who no longer view the Clippers as the clown franchise, Donald Sterling’s franchise.
They now have their own home, their own unique wall, their own place in this NBA ecosystem. It looks like the Clippers will forever be the Clippers, and it might be the case after all.
But they have set themselves up, at least through intention and investment, to continue to take risks even while they are sitting idle.
