5 reasons why LA Clippers need to be taken seriously as NBA Championship contenders for the 2021-22 season
The LA Clippers have been among the elite contenders in the NBA in the last two campaigns, but the team has been unable to put things together in the NBA Playoffs yet.
Kawhi Leonard and Paul George arriving in the 2019 offseason made the LA Clippers a title contender, but the team will be without the two-time Finals MVP for a big part of the upcoming campaign, and possibly the entire season.
While many expect the LA Clippers to fall from the group of contenders in the Western Conference, that might not necessarily be the case, as the team showed (in a small sample size) that it could be led by Paul George in big postseason series.
Five reasons why the LA Clippers could still be contenders in the 2021-22 NBA season
The LA Clippers lost Leonard midway through the 2021 NBA Playoffs in Game 4 of the Western Semis against the top-seeded Utah Jazz. Leonard partially tore his ACL and underwent successful surgery.
Leonard's absence will certainly hinder the LA Clippers early, but head coach Tyronn Lue and a group of veterans on the roster could make it work.
In this article, we will give you five reasons why the LA Clippers should be taken seriously in the upcoming NBA season.
Without further ado, let us take a look.
#5 Three-point shooting
The LA Clippers led the entire NBA in three-point shooting percentage during the 2020-21 regular season. Although Kawhi Leonard was a great part of that achievement by making 39.8% of his own three-pointers, the team as a whole made 41.1% of its threes.
In NBA history, only three teams have had a higher three-point field-goal percentage in a single season than the 2020-21 LA Clippers, and the list includes the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors.
Without Leonard, and retaining snipers such as Marcus Morris (47% from 3P last year), Nicolas Batum (40.4%), Luke Kennard (44.6%) and Reggie Jackson (43.3%), the LA Clippers could be dominant from the three-point line and even work towards making rivals pay from that area, attempting more shots from distance (they were just 14th in 3P attempts last year).
#4 Reggie Jackson's performances
Reggie Jackson showed a great level of basketball last season with the LA Clippers, especially in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. Without Kawhi Leonard from the start of the 2021-22 campaign, the experienced guard could definitely provide a great offense for Tyronn Lue's team from day one.
Last season, Jackson averaged 10.7 points per game with a 45/43/81 shooting splits in the regular season (67 appearances, 43 starts). However, Jackson started in 17 of his 19 postseason appearances and averaged 17.8 points, three rebounds and three assists per game in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, with a 48/40/87 shooting split.