Oh man, the Los Angeles Clippers just made a litany of NBA “experts” look really bad. Not only did they not make it to the Finals, but they also couldn’t even make it to the Western Conference Finals. It was becoming clear throughout the playoffs that the Clippers might not have been the team that everybody thought they were. However, many were still holding out hope they’d be able to flip the switch.
That never happened and they blew a 3-1 lead to a young Denver Nuggets team. It was a massive collapse but it fits in with the Clippers’ brand. They have still never made it to the Conference Finals. After not taking the regular season very seriously, it was expected that the team was just saving themselves for the playoffs. It’s clear that the strategy didn’t work.
Clippers Relentlessly Trolled
The Clippers have made some enemies along the way. They’ve got a number of players who like to stir the pot so many are relishing the opportunity to take shots at the team. Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard had a public beef brewing with Paul George after the Clippers beat his team. Lillard got the last laugh though as he trolled George hard over a bad miss in the fourth quarter.
Patrick Beverley is one of the biggest antagonists in the NBA and Lillard buried him after the loss.
The person with perhaps the most brutal shot at the Clippers was Blazers star C.J. McCollum, who reference the team’s vote to not continue the season back when the Milwaukee Bucks boycotted a Round 1 game.
Lakers legend Magic Johnson has a lot of reasons to not like the Clippers and decided to bring up the fact that this isn’t the first time the team has blown a 3-1 lead.
While there were plenty of athletes who reacted to the loss, there were also scores of fans who piled on the Clippers.
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The Kings of L.A.
What this loss does is cement the fact that the Lakers are still the kings of Los Angeles. The Clippers were already anointed without winning anything and that’s blown up in their faces. Magic Johnson summed it up the best.
With the Clippers out of the way, the Lakers have a clear path to the Finals. Obviously, the Nuggets are not to be underestimated. They’ve got a really talented duo in Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. However, they’ve played two seven-game series in a row and the Lakers are a different beast. They’ve got the best player in the world in LeBron James and arguably the second-best player left in the playoffs in Anthony Davis. Unlike the Clippers, the Lakers haven’t been overlooking anybody this season. The Nuggets will be in for a brutal test. Even if they don’t pull off another historic upset, these playoffs have been a massive success for the young team.
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