Last season, with the Clippers out of the playoffs, I decided it would be fun to keep tabs on all of the former Clippers in the NBA Playoffs. While the Clippers made it again this year, I figured that after their early exit, why not take another look? Once a Clipper, always a Clipper, right? Well, maybe. Let’s take a look at where some of our former friends are thriving (even the ones who Clipper Nation isn’t so fond of anymore).

Eastern Conference Finals: Heat Lead Celtics 2-0

It’s an uneventful ECF for former Clippers, as the Heat don’t have any and the Celtics aren’t using Blake Griffin or the injured Danilo Gallinari. Both of the preceeding round closeouts had some Clipper intrigue attached, as Isaiah Hartenstein had 4 blocks off the bench for the Knicks in their game 6 elimination at the hands of the heat, and Doc Rivers and Tobias Harris were both involved in the Sixers blowing their series lead to get sent home by the Celtics. While Griffin, Gallinari, and Montrezl Harrell all didn’t appear in Celtics-Sixers, Rivers was of course involved in his team’s collapse, and Harris had 19 points and and 5 rebounds in a game 7 blowout loss after a no-show (1-7 for 2 points) performance in game 6.

Western Conference Finals: Nuggets lead Lakers, 2-0

The Nuggets are certainly the leader in former Clipper rooting interests (although Blake winning a title, even if he didn’t play a minute, would make many Clippers fans happy), as Jeff Green continues to play a prominent role, Reggie Jackson is getting spot minutes, and DeAndre Jordan is providing some locker room leadership. JaMychal Green and Wenyen Gabriel both didn’t play in the Lakers’ closeout win over the Warriors, and Wenyen has yet to play in the Western Conference Finals.

FCIT2023NBAPPR (Former Clippers In The 2023 NBA Playoffs Power Rankings)

(A purely subjective, mixed-criteria list where I rank former the former Clippers who have played in this year’s playoffs on a combination of how well they’re playing in this year’s playoffs–the most important factor–and their role, team success, importance to Clipper history, and how much I like them.)

  1. Jeff Green (Previous: 3; it is what it is)
  2. Tobias Harris (Preview: 1; the Sixers went out sad, but Tobi still had one of the better playoff runs of former Clippers)
  3. Chris Paul (Previous: 4; out now after another injury-riddled playoffs)
  4. Luke Kennard (Previous: 5; he’s out, but was effective in his role)
  5. Isaiah Hartenstein (Previous: 2; now that he’s no longer playing, I think Chris and Luke were both a little more impactful)
  6. Reggie Jackson (Previous: 11; I think it’s probably likely Reggie ends up bumped back down, but for now, the guy who seems like he has a chance at conference finals minutes gets bumped up)
  7. Landry Shamet (Previous: 6; when no one is producing, having had a large role is still noteworthy)
  8. Blake Griffin (Previous: 13)
  9. DeAndre Jordan (Previous: 12; if him, Blake, and Wenyen are all not gonna play in the conference finals, I’ll give the tiebreaker to the Clipper legends)
  10. Wenyen Gabriel (Previous: 10)
  11. Doc Rivers (Previous: 8; I’m beginning to think this guy’s not a real doctor)
  12. JaMychal Green (Previous: 7; his one “big” game turned out to be a blip on the radar, and then the Warriors got knocked out)
  13. Austin Rivers (Previous: 9; he didn’t get many chances but helped his team get his only playoff win before getting eliminated)
  14. Montrezl Harrell (Previous: 14; Doc Rivers didn’t trust Montrezl Harrell. That should tell you all you need to know)

As far as I can tell, that’s it for former Clippers in the 2023 NBA Playoffs! Did I miss anyone who should be included in the next roundup? Who are you rooting for, and who are you rooting against? Is there anyone who you are most excited to follow over the coming weeks?

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Lucas Hann

Lucas Hann

Lucas has covered the Clippers since 2011, and has been credentialed by the team since 2014. He co-founded 213Hoops with Robert Flom in January 2020.  He is a graduate of Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, CA and St. John's University in Queens, NY.  He earned his MA in Communication and Rhetorical Studies from Syracuse University.

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