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<\/p>\nChris Paul is officially a Clipper, and with that, the 2025\u201326 LA Clippers just made NBA history\u2014but not for their dominance. They\u2019re now the oldest team ever, with an average age of 33.2 years, surpassing even the Stockton-and-Malone era Jazz. With CP3 hitting 40, this roster\u2019s giving more \u201cgiving chances to the elderly\u201d vibe than a rebuild. So the big question is\u2014can wisdom and mileage still win championships? Richard Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins sure have some thoughts on that.<\/p>\n
So, can the Clippers actually make the playoffs this season? Kendrick Perkins doesn\u2019t sound too convinced. In fact, when he heard Clippers exec Lawrence Frank hyping up the team\u2019s trade for Bradley Beal, Perk\u2019s reaction was\u2026well, gross: \u201cLawrence Frank did an interview and he was so happy about getting Bradley Beal\u2026 Almost threw up. Almost threw up.\u201d He didn\u2019t hold back at all, especially when talking about the lack of one thing he believes truly matters in today\u2019s NBA\u2014wings.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need wings. And I ain\u2019t talking about Buffalo Wild Wings. I ain\u2019t talking about from Wingstop. I\u2019m talking about youth athleticism,\u201d Perkins said, calling out the Clippers\u2019 aging roster. He praised teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Indiana Pacers, and Houston Rockets for investing in young, athletic wing players. \u201cThe Rockets went loaded up. They got wings. They didn\u2019t trade away none of their wings except for Dillon Brooks. But they two best defensive wings they kept. They kept Tari Eason. They kept Amen Thompson.\u201d That\u2019s the kind of build he believes wins in today\u2019s league\u2014not just IQ and veteran presence.<\/p>\n
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via Imago<\/p>\n
Jan 12, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) reacts against the Charlotte Hornets during the first half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
Perkins also pointed out<\/a> the question marks around the Clippers\u2019 current depth. He gave a nod to Derrick Jones Jr. for his defensive potential but remained skeptical. \u201cI think he could defend his a\u2013 off at times, right? But he\u2019s not known as elite defender,\u201d he said. Even with respected veterans like Nic Batum and head coach Tyronn Lue on board, Perkins admitted, \u201cI never want to question Tyronn, but I don\u2019t know where he\u2019s going to find minutes at for a kid like Dunn\u2026 I\u2019m just looking at this Clippers team, and it\u2019s too many question marks. It\u2019s too many question marks.\u201d<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Now, adding Bradley Beal<\/a> does bring some spark\u2014he averaged 17 points, 3.7 assists, and shot 50% from the field last season with the Suns. And yes, he\u2019s on a reasonable $11 million, two-year deal. But pairing him with aging stars like Kawhi Leonard and James Harden on a team already breaking records as the oldest in NBA history? That\u2019s a lot of wear and tear to manage across an 82-game season. As it stands, the talent is there, but the durability, youth, and defensive depth? That\u2019s what has everyone\u2014from analysts to fans\u2014raising eyebrows.<\/p>\n Too Old to Win? Richard Jefferson sounds the alarm on Clippers\u2019 aging roster<\/p>\n Richard Jefferson didn\u2019t hold back when talking about the 2025\u201326 Clippers. He had one clear warning: age is not just a number\u2014it\u2019s a risk. \u201cI believe that this team could go Philly right last year or this team could go and win a championship,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s their spectrum\u2026 they could have injuries and be bad\u2026 and we also could see this team go and win a champion.\u201d But then came the real punchline: \u201cHistorically, when the average age of your team is closer to receiving their pension than they are being drafted, it\u2019s not a good sign. It\u2019s not a good sign.\u201d And yep\u2014he doubled down: \u201cThey are closer to the age of receiving their pension than they are being drafted. And that\u2019s the average age of their team. That\u2019s a tough one.\u201d<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n To understand Jefferson\u2019s point, just look at the cautionary tale of last season\u2019s Philadelphia 76ers<\/a>. They were built to contend, stacked with top-tier talent, and yet they missed the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade. The Sixers ended their season with a 23\u201351 record and were knocked out of playoff contention with eight games still to go. Injuries told the story. Joel Embiid and Paul George<\/a>\u2014who cost the franchise over $100 million\u2014only played 19 and 41 games, respectively. Embiid battled everything from a foot sprain to a sinus fracture to ongoing knee issues, never looking like his MVP self. Meanwhile, George didn\u2019t just miss time\u2014he looked like a shadow of his prime, losing his burst and explosiveness. That\u2019s exactly the type of collapse Jefferson warns could happen in LA.<\/p>\n Now apply that same lens to this Clippers<\/a> team. Their roster is undeniably one of the oldest in the league, especially with the addition of 40-year-old Chris Paul to a core that already includes James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Nicolas Batum, and Brook Lopez\u2014all 34 or older. While veterans like Paul and Batum may log fewer minutes, the success of this team still hinges on the health and consistency of players like Harden and Kawhi. Harden<\/a> was a workhorse last season, and Kawhi\u2019s long injury history is always looming. Younger pieces like Kris Dunn and Ivica Zubac help round out the depth chart, but the real test will be navigating an 82-game grind with stars whose best ability may no longer be availability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chris Paul is officially a Clipper, and with that, the 2025\u201326 LA Clippers just made NBA history\u2014but not…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":195241,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3769],"tags":[679,7,6,678,207,3817],"class_list":{"0":"post-195240","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia-76ers","8":"tag-76ers","9":"tag-basketball","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-philadelphia","12":"tag-philadelphia-76ers","13":"tag-philadelphia76ers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114918143104169503","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=195240"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195240\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/195241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=195240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=195240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=195240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}