Interestingly, crickets from the Lake fans on Beal (that I could see)

I’ve creeped their board, and they thought Beal would contribute nothing on D and clog up the offense with Bron and Luka. They weren’t pining for Beal.

With no additional roster moves, the Clippers have the 2nd best roster in the West (and perhaps the NBA)

What exactly are you smoking?

Only one ball to share between Harden, Beal, Kawhi, and Zu. I foresee lots of iso sludge ball ahead, but I hope I’m wrong.

Lawrence Frank says Chris Paul is a player the LA Clippers are “strongly considering” as a free agent signing.

And to those worried about CP3 not understanding the role being offered….

From Joey Linn:

I asked Lawrence Frank where the Clippers see minutes for another reserve guard — like Chris Paul — in a rotation that already includes James Harden, Bradley Beal, Kris Dunn, and Bogdan Bogdanovic.

Here is his full answer:

“Role awareness, especially in this next roster spot, will be critical. When you look at it, you have 10 quality rotation players right now… We typically play nine. What we’ve seen is the problem of potentially having too many guys and how that can impact the team. So we’ve learned from those lessons and I think the conversations that we have with anyone who is going to join the Clippers next — they understand it’s a reserve role. They understand going into camp exactly what it looks like. So there is no preconceived misconceptions.”

He added the Clippers have a responsibility to take care of James Harden after he played 79 games and the fifth-most minutes last season. Also noted the need for playable depth given how infrequently NBA teams have their entire roster available.

Other than health, winning 53 games or better will depend on how Lue manages games and rotations. That’s a big question mark to me, but I do think this roster represents the best alignment between the front office and Lue’s visions. Lue likes guys who can win 1 v 1 matchups on offense and vets and guys that he went up the coaching ladder with. The FO wants positional size and defense. This team has both.

I think the Clippers will have the best defensive front line in the league and one of the better 2 way 3-4-5 units. Harden will help the team win games that are 50-50 to keep them on pace for a 50+ win season.

When I look at the competition in the West, I do think the Clippers got markedly better vs everyone except OKC.

I don’t think Denver got better. Cam Johnson is a downgrade from MPJ in terms of height, shooting, rebounding and gravity. You had to account for MPJ on every possession. I don’t think Cam Johnson creates those types of issues. Their bench depth is just Bruce Brown and the rooks/2nd years they had last year. That’s still a great starting 5, but not as good as the ones we’ve faced.

Houston obviously got better but they don’t match up well with LAC. There’s not one position where they’re clearly better than LAC among their starting 5. Amen Thompson could take a leap and become a top 10 player, but in terms of offensive skill, Beal is just better. I would not take VanVleet, KD, Sengun over Harden, Kawhi, Zu. Our bench, although older, is better skilled, though they are more athletic.

LAC matches up well with GSW b/c of Zu. I could see them improving if Kuminga grows as a player and Jimmy/Steph stay healthy, but they’re not a better squad than LAC.

Minnesota has no point guard (Conley is washed), lost some bench depth, Naz Reid is overpaid and overrated and Gobert is older and creakier. I don’t think they’ve made the improvements that LAC has, though I do like their deep bench and they might get better if those young guys get more time on the floor. Minnesota overachieved last season.

Lakers have talent, but they’re going to have chemistry issues and defensive challenges.

San Antonio should make a good leap, but Zu’s presence makes LAC a tough match up for them.

Dallas will struggle without Kyrie and we have size to match their big front line.

As for OKC – LAC will be better in half court set than OKC, but OKC still retains that advantage on points off turnovers, especially when they get to slapping people around at the half court line in full view of the refs. I would say OKC will be better but there’s a clear opportunity for LAC if they can match the physicality, cut down on long outlets and live ball TOs.

LAC being the 2nd best team in the West is an attainable target, health permitting.

Mike D on offense and JVG on defense. What a wonderful world, perhaps but not good enough, since Lue still makes the creepy rotation decisions. The ATO last defensive play rotation for the A Gordon dunk had maliciousness overflowing.

Yea hurts to trade away the MVP, but I’m not losing sleep over their decision to have a “contender” for 4+ years, and still having this solid roster 6 years later, instead of rebuilding around Shai.

Norm by far lead the league in points per touch the last 2 seasons. Beal was like closer to league average. Doesn’t mean he’s a bad player, but like you said, far more “Paul George” than Norm Powell. That just worries me that Beal might be much more of ball stopper than a guy like Norm. I think you need a few guys on the court that know their job is just to either shoot or move it on to someone else.

I think we saw the chemistry with Paul George, Harden, and Kawhi be a little rocky at times, given they all had to share one ball.

Clippers did win 51 games with PG in 2024, and now compared to the 2024 team, you’re replacing Norm, Mann, Coffey, Westbrook, and Theis, with Bogi, Dunn, DJJ, Collins, and Lopez.

51 wins felt like a little disappointment in 2024, but still more than last year, so by that measure, definitely the hope would be to be back up to 53-55 wins based on the current roster?