Bill Yin breaks down whether the Los Angeles Clippers will make the 2026 NBA playoffs.

Following the Clippers’ recent move at the trade deadline to offload James Harden and Ivica Zubac, it seems they’re stuck in limbo between contention and rebuilding. They swapped Harden for Darius Garland, a young but injury-prone point guard who will presumably make his way into the rotation at some point this season.

But it’s difficult to see them throwing in the towel. The Clippers’ first round pick of the next draft belongs to OKC. The Clippers don’t have much reason to throw their season away, as it only benefits the Thunder. And arguably they’re tired of helping them out, after gifting them a perennial MVP-candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a few years ago in the infamous Paul George deal.

At the All-Star Break, and with 27 games to go, the Clippers (26–28) occupy the tenth seed in the cutthroat Western Conference.

DraftKings Sportsbook lists LAC at +130 to reach the postseason and -155 to miss it.

Will the Clippers make the playoffs?

The main story surrounding the Clippers this season, not counting the trade deadline bombshells, is the exceptional play of Kawhi Leonard, who appears to have drunk from the fountain of youth lately. Leonard is posting the highest PPG of his career, with his 27.9 points anchoring the Clippers. He hasn’t reached 27 PPG since his last and only season with the Raptors in 2018-2019. He’s also managed to maintain his elite efficiency, slashing .491/.383/.912 as the Clippers’ main offensive weapon.

The Clippers are 3-1 since dealing away Harden and Zubac while posting about a +4.7 net rating in this stretch. They’re still getting some nice production out of their auxiliary pieces. Brook Lopez and John Collins aren’t having career years, per se, but are pulling their weight. Newly acquired former-Pacer Bennedict Mathurin has only appeared in two games for the Clippers, but has averaged 12.5 points on .304 shooting from the field. Once Mathurin and Garland get used to their new teammates, the Clippers should get quite a bit better. In that four game stretch since the trade deadline, the Clippers are posting 114.7 OFFRTG (28th in NBA) and 109.9 DEFRTG (3rd in NBA). While the offense has been stagnant without Harden, their defense has been top tier.

The Clippers also fortunately have an easy rest-of-season schedule, placing in the top three softest for the remainder of 2026. Due to this schedule, combined with Leonard’s availability and elite output, it seems reasonable for them to at least be in play-in contention.

Verdict: Los Angeles Clippers to make the playoffs (+130)