New era of the Lakers-Clippers cross-town rivalry set to begin

David Stern’s veto not just turned Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant from potential teammates to contenders but also changed the tide when it comes to basketball in Los Angeles

In 1984, the Los Angeles Clippers moved from San Diego to Los Angeles and despite a loss in their first game to the city’s more famous franchise the Associated Press dubbed it as the beginning of a cross-town rivalry. But was it?

From 1984 up until the time Chris Paul signed with the Clippers, the head-to-head record between the rivals stood at 98-29 with the Los Angeles Lakers enjoying a winning percentage of 77.16.

Multiple players and newspapers have stated that rivalries are built when games are played between two equally matched teams. Before Paul arrived there were three instances or seasons when the records of the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers were pretty similar. Does being evenly matched in three out of 27 seasons qualify it to be a rivalry? Nonetheless, it was always called one because the two teams shared the same city and post 1999, the same arena too.

The rivalry could possibly be compared to the recently renewed Manchester rivalry in the EPL.

20 to 30 years into the future when this rivalry will be written about, Chris Paul’s move to the Clippers, after NBA Commissioner David Stern vetoed his trade to the Lakers, would be termed as the turning point. His arrival not only attracted more players to the Clippers franchise but also, along with Blake Griffin, he took the franchise to the Playoffs and a winning record for the first time in five years.

During the season of 2011-2012, the season shortened due to a lockout, the records of the Lakers (41-25) and Clippers (40-26) were separated by only one game. That is the closest the records of these two franchises have been in the history of their rivalry.

Considering the teams’ current statuses, in the coming years that might also be considered as the last season the Lakers started as favourites to win the season series. The very next season was historic for the Clippers.

It was the first time they had swept the season series with the Lakers and the first time they had won the Pacific Division title since moving to Los Angeles.