It was a disappointing end to the season for Los Angeles’s hallway rivals, the Lakers and Clippers.
As the 2024 NBA playoffs continue to progress, the Lakers and Clippers find themselves sitting on their couches having been eliminated in the first round. Changes are inevitable for both teams. Throughout the regular season, the Clippers were objectively the better LA team, finishing as the number four seed, and facing the number five-seeded Dallas Mavericks. The Lakers had an up-and-down season but managed to make a late-season surge, grabbing the number seven seed.
The Clippers seem to be cursed as they were again plagued with injuries in their first-round matchup. It’s only fair to say that the Paul George and Kawhi Leonard era has been underwhelming, given that the team traded nearly their entire future to acquire George and paid Leonard a massive contract. The sentiment from Clippers fans is not good, as they are simply frustrated with the team. Even longtime Clippers fan Gavin Vogel 24’ expressed his frustration, saying: “I’m disappointed with the team. At this point I’d like us [the Clippers] to blow it up, getting rid of James Harden and Paul George. We need to get draft picks.” That’s the main concern for the Clippers as they traded a haul of draft picks and young talent to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for All-Star Paul George. This acquisition made it championship or bust for the Clippers, and so far it’s been a bust. The Clippers’ future is looking rather bleak these days. Time is running out to win a championship.
LeBron James is 39 years old and even stated that he’s not sure how many more years he has left in the tank. Despite his age, LeBron is still playing at an extremely high level, really making it vital that the Lakers maximize the remaining years he has playing. LeBron has a player option heading into free agency, meaning that he can either opt in and stay with the Lakers or opt-out, allowing him to explore other options. It seems increasingly likely that LeBron will opt-in, playing out the rest of his contract. The Lakers can’t remain stagnant, as they have to construct a much better roster around whoever their new head coach is.
The Lakers have already been aggressive in their head coaching search, as there are several candidates. Jonny Kornfeld 24’, a passionate Laker fan, shared his thoughts saying, “We need to bring back D’Lo, build around Anthony Davis, and let LeBron walk. We should grab some shooters, and defenders, and just center the team around him (AD). If we do bring back LeBron we should hire JJ Redick, but if we don’t, then look elsewhere.”
Once again, anything short of a championship will be considered a failure, making it a pivotal summer for both franchises.
