“Clippers are just mopping the streets of LA with the Los Angeles Lakers” - Stephen A. Smith makes an emphatic statement on the power dynamic in LA
The Los Angeles Lakers, following LeBron James' two-year extension, are once more the talk in Hollywood. James is now contractually tied with Anthony Davis as they try to lead the Lakers back to NBA glory over the next two years.
While the Lakers have received plenty of hype as a result, the LA Clippers are quietly looking to bounce back after an injury-plagued season. Stephen A. Smith on "Get Up" asserted that despite the Lakers retaining their core, they’re still not the best team in Hollywood.
“We need to pump our brakes in this regard… They still ain’t the best team in LA. Kawhi Leonard is coming back. Paul George is there. John Wall is a big-time pickup…
“And so John Wall, with the Clippers, with Kawhi and Paul George, they’ve beaten the Lakers seven straight times [and], like, 32 of the last 39 times. It ain’t even a damn rivalry!”
Smith emphatically concluded:
“I mean the Clippers are just mopping the streets of LA with the Los Angeles Lakers.”
The Clippers were without Kawhi Leonard for the entirety of last season, while Paul George played only 31 games. Yet they finished with a better record than the Lakers. The Clippers’ 42-40 slate nearly catapulted them to the play-in tournament before George was sidelined due to COVID-19.
Meanwhile, James, Davis and Russell Westbrook limped to a 33-49 record. The trio were only 11-10 when they played together. The Lakers went into the 2021-22 season as one of the heavy championship favorites but ended up as one of the biggest failures in NBA history.
Reggie Jackson (36 PTS, 9 AST, 8 REB) went off AGAIN against the Lakers 😤
The Clippers have won 7 straight against their LA rivals 🔥 https://t.co/sq539LKLM2
The Battle of LA hasn’t really been much of a battle for almost a decade already. The Clippers hold an overwhelming 32-9 edge since the 2011-12 season, including a 7-0 record against the Lakers over the last two years.
Reggie Jackson just EMBARRASSED LeBron and Westbrook and the Lakers, and he loved it. He has no love for these Lakers.
In the LA Clippers sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers last season, Paul George only played in one game, back in December. For the rest of the season, it was Reggie Jackson and Marcus Morris who tormented the more illustrious of the two LA squads.
Draymond Green concedes that the LA Clippers are the real threat in the west, not the Los Angeles Lakers
It isn’t just Stephen A. Smith who considers the LA Clippers to be a better team than the Los Angeles Lakers. Draymond Green of the reigning champs Golden State Warriors even went to the extent of calling the Clippers a threat to beat them next season.
Here’s what Green had to say about the Clippers’ potential next season on “The Old Man and the Three” podcast:
“Ty Lue is arguably one of the best coaches in the NBA. Arguably the best. Someone can make that argument. And then they have great players. Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, the guys they're filling in around them.”
He added:
“You go pull a trade and get Robert Covington and Norman Powell, you already have Marcus Morris, Reggie Jackson, they're a real threat … That's a real threat and a problem. They're a threat and a problem.”
The LA Clippers notably hadn't signed John Wall at the time of Green's comments.
.@Money23Green shares which team he thinks is the biggest threat in the West. 👀
Watch the full live show with @jj_redick, @talter, and @stephenasmith: youtu.be/kNZBzJGWb2s https://t.co/BuYsldEqCZ
Meanwhile, the former Defensive Player of the Year winner dismissed the Los Angeles Lakers’ chances even if they manage to acquire Kyrie Irving:
“They could contend, but they won’t beat us.”
Draymond Green on if the Lakers paired LeBron James & Kyrie Irving:
“They could contend, but they won't beat us.”
(via @Lucas_Shaw) https://t.co/dwoNfsAgOb
The Lakers will face the Warriors in their first game of the 2022-23 season before taking on the Clippers in their very next game.