Los Angeles Clippers look ahead after successful turnaround season – NBA Feature
In one season, the outlook of the Los Angeles Clippers franchise has changed completely. For a franchise that had not been to the playoffs in the past six seasons and only won two playoff series in their history, reaching the 2nd round of the
playoffs will be counted as a huge success. And it surely was one.
The Clippers acquired Chris Paul is a preseason trade and since then, the club has been on the rise. Not only have they started playing great basketball and winning games, they have also started looking like a club that is ready to invest in a championship
and has the financial resources to do so. And that is a club players and businessmen will be attracted to.
“You can do it gradually, and we were trying. Or, you can do it in one fell swoop. And that’s what we did. I think we’ve created an environment where guys come here with an expectation of success” said Clippers Vice President of Basketball Operation Neil
Olshey.
Paul had a tremendous first season with the Clippers, averaging 19.1 points and 9.1 assists per game and becoming the leader of the Clippers squad. His presence made other players look and play better, particularly Blake Griffin. On many occasions during
the regular season, Paul was seen carrying the team on his back to close games and record wins. And he has good things to say about the club as well.
“I’ll be the first one to tell any player that this is where you want to be. The team has all the small things, the great training staff, the great practice facility and a guy like Blake Griffin to play with. So, why not?” said Paul.
Olshey has said that he is now looking to strengthen his roster, with the addition of a shooting guard and a backup forward with good shooting. But before he can go on hiring new talent, he needs to make decisions on his own roster. Chauncey Billups, Randy
Foye, Nick Young, Kenyon Martin and Reggie Evans are all going to be free agents in the off season, and will be looking for contracts. The Clippers need to decide on their future and do it fast. They would probably want to sign back Billups and Young for sure.
They also need to decide on the fate of coach Vinny Del Negro. That is the first thing that they will tackle and make a decision on. Del Negro faced criticism during the regular season when the Clippers were having a bad patch, but has done a good job overall
with the team.
“Coach is a great guy. He had to manage so many different situations. He didn’t know what team he was going to have” said Paul regarding Del Negro.
A great season is in store for the Clippers as they are now officially on the basketball map. They will now have a tough summer ahead of them in which important decisions will need to be made to further enhance the chances of success of this club. Make no
mistake about it; the expectations from this Clippers team will be much higher come next season.
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