The Los Angeles Clippers’ season has gotten off to more than a rocky start.
After last year ended with a thud when the Clippers were blown out by the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of the second round, it was expected the team would regroup, come out strong in 2025, and look to make another playoff run.
But the season has gotten off to a terrible start and after being hit by a wave of injuries and players performing vastly below expectations, the Clippers now sit at 14th in the Western Conference with a 5-16 record — and gearing up for a playoff run is far from a realistic goal at the moment.
The Clippers traveled across the country to begin a five-game road trip, and they reached arguably their lowest point of the season full of them after a 140-123 loss to the Miami Heat on Monday. They trailed by as much as 39 points and were really never in the game aside from an uneven first quarter effort.
Next 5 Games Will Decide the Fate of the Clippers
And on the back of that disappointing effort the team has reached a true inflection point — a two-week, five-game stretch that could very well determine both the direction of this season and potentially their decision-making going forward.
The Clippers will look to rebound starting with a game in Atlanta against a solid Hawks team before heading to Memphis to play a gritty Grizzlies team that has still played good basketball in spite of drama surrounding star guard Ja Morant. After that, they’ll head back west to face off against a strong Timberwolves team, then play in Houston against the Rockets before heading back to the Intuit Dome for a rematch with the Grizzlies on December 15.
It’s difficult to see many wins in that stretch as of now, and the home game against the Grizzlies looks like the best opportunity to get a victory.
If the Clippers only get that single victory against Memphis, they’ll see their record fall to 6-20, a mark that could be an insurmountable hole. On the other end of the spectrum, if Los Angeles can go on a five-game win streak starting on Wednesday against Atlanta, they’ll improve to 10-16 and could climb back into postseason contention depending on other results around the conference.
It may seem a little early to discuss do-or-die scenarios, but if the season continues on the current path, it could very well be time to look at rebuilding scenarios after that stretch ends in mid-December.
On December 15th, trade restrictions on veterans Nicolas Batum, Brook Lopez, and Chris Paul will expire after each signed contracts with Los Angeles in the offseason.
That’s not to say that any of them will be traded after that point, but the option would at least be available should President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank choose to begin a reset.
The chances that sending any of those three out of town in a trade suddenly change the Clippers’ fortunes are unrealistic, but a rebuild could be on the horizon — in-season or otherwise — if the team doesn’t turn things around quickly.
The Clippers have lost 13 out of their last 15 games to fall dangerously close to irrelevancy, and all the levers that head coach Tyronn Lue has tried to pull have come up empty during this stretch. If the season falls into complete disarray and the team falls out of the postseason picture entirely, then a retooling of the roster for 2026 looks likely.
But if they can pull it together during this road swing, that may afford the Clippers enough time to see how the season develops when Bogdan Bogdanovic and Derrick Jones, Jr., return from injuries.
Again, it may seem dramatic to be talking about potential rebuilds for the future at the start of December, but this period in the holiday season just may have lasting ramifications for the franchise.
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