I think will really be a defining year for Ty Lue. He has a ton of pieces to work with and will really be on him to getting them all to buy in. I think Ty has had some up and downs in this role, but I think also some more difficult personalities in the past where it’s maybe been more of a challenge (Morris, Westbrook, PG, Bones, etc.).

We’ll see where he lands this year. I don’t know the personality of the likes of Collins and Beal, but I think should be at least a little easier the Morris and Westbrook. CP presents an interesting case of coming in saying the right things, but a very known ego and remains to be seen if he’ll really be able to turn down the intensity. And Bogi may be coming off being a superstar on the international stage, but will have to adjust to a much more limited role, or very well “should” be the 11th man out and may be pushed out of the rotation. When rotations shrink to like 8 or 9, then they’re dealing with a few of these guys not playing.

It might serve Ty best to bench a guy like Nico where you know he’ll buy in and be ready when called upon. Maybe limit the load on Kawhi and Harden, get the new guys regular minutes, hope the returning role players establish some real chemistry with the new guys.

Norm and Zu seized their window, while TMann had a tough go. Norm and TMann are gone now, along with others–Amir, KPJ, Mo Bamba, Eubanks, Bones.

The biggest x-factor for the Clips has been flipped. Going from “can they win any games, what will their record be when and if Kawhi comes back” to “what are the Clippers going to be like with a healthy Kawhi in training camp and to start the season?”

Another flip is changed expectations on win total. Coming off a 50-win season, closing on a tear, going out in a hard-fought series against an elite opponent, making high profile roster additions. Sticking to a previous metaphor, going into the season the fort is much more impressive and stronger, and holding/maintaining it is a very different task. Oddsmakers want bettors to bite by projecting 47 wins (in a ridiculously competitive conference), while Clipper fans expect to get to 50 wins again, and folks in Club O are at 55+ and ready to lose their minds in anticipation and excitement (in August).

So where’s the buy-in? Like everything else it starts with Kawhi, I think, who still has everything to prove. Interestingly, I think that this Clipper team will be much better and more resilient if Kawhi is out or goes down, with the additions of Collins and Lopez, and the return of Batum and DJJ. The “Ocean’s 11” approach highlights greater resilience, CP3 in reserve if Harden gets tweaked, Dunn and Bogie playing behind Beal, etc. Even if you boil down the Clippers to 6 or 7 guys they should still be very good and able to win games.

Beal’s buy-in is pretty obvious and striking. I keep coming back to Zu, and I think he’s going to flourish with the spotlight on him now for the first time–Zu’s profile was completely different at this point last year, when he had signed the new deal and we all knew what he did and how good he could be. Harden is right there with him, with so much to look forward to this season.

I guess the idea might be that the Clippers will miss feisty scrappers and underdogs like Dunn and DJJ playing extra hard, while Norm and Zu made the most out of Harden’s bag. I think, however, that Dunn and DJJ are there to attack on demand, and JVG is still a big factor. It’s also hard to envision a let up on a team with Chris Paul coming in as a back up.

Chemistry and vibes should be pretty good, I think. Maybe even great. If anything, some of the guys (Kawhi, CP3) are too competitive, but it seems like a lot of the old hands (Batum & Lopez) should get the flow and play the long game, keep the vibes good, and the level of professionalism seems to be off the charts. Harden stepped into a new role and persona last year, and it’s going to be interesting to see how he fares with a strong backup, less pressure, less responsibility, and his own competitive bar set high.

We all know how it goes–just antsy. I guess I should add that I’ve become an abolish football (CTE) guy, which turns me much more towards the NBA and basketball in August and September than anybody should be. Plenty of work to do, but I love thinking about this new version of the Clippers.

I’m a bit worried about the drop-off in defense, but I’m most concerned that last year’s team had buy-in and chemistry that’s just tough to bottle and bring in back-to-back years

The conversation didn’t break any fresh ground. The format was okay, but a little funky–Shap had Pina go through and rank his top ten Clippers. It provided a good chance to talk about everybody. Pina’s rankings were: Kawhi; Harden; Zu; Beal; Lopez; Collins; CP3; Batum; KDunn; Bogie. Which meant that DJJ was “left out,” #11–but they had a quick proviso noting that he could easily be a starter. It just shows how the rankings perhaps say something significant, but they don’t really tell the larger story.

I think I got CP3 (6) and Batum (7) right. That was a spot where I snagged for a second. I don’t disagree with it, or with Nico’s importance to the team. And he will need to get a good amount of minutes to mesh with different lineups. Nico might actually be the Clippers 4th best and most valuable player–he’s amazing, does so much and so many different things. But he also seems to be the guy who needs the least minutes and he might be saved more than anybody else for April & May ’26, the stretch run and the playoffs. So I’ve been slotting him in as the 11th man for the regular season. I think Pina is right, however, and #7 overall is a good spot.

They raised the question of Harden (2) vs. Zu (3), and it’s a good one. I agree and give Harden the nod myself because he makes Zu so much better and more effective, rather than the other way around. But things are going to change this year with CP3 as Harden’s backup–having another all-time great PNR player and PG is going to raise Zu’s level (so long Kevin Porter Jr. minutes!). Both Harden and Zu will probably have their minutes reduced (great for Harden, different for Zu) because they have awesome backups now.

That’s a good segue to Lopez at #5. I’m thinking about Zu a lot lately and keep wanting to go more deeply into his prospects and expectations, but Brook Lopez is a phenomenal addition to the roster, and his ranking at #5 is perfectly appropriate (whatever these rankings are worth). I was looking up Zu’s rebounding (distracted for a second by Yves Missi’s gaudy offensive rebounding numbers) and then looked at blocks–do the citizens realize that Lopez was #2 in total blocks last year behind Wemby’s ridiculous number? #4 in Blocks Per Game? Zu’s defense and rim protection is fantastic, but he’s not an elite shot blocker. Lopez is, and then there’s his 139 3s, or whatever the number is. The blocks and 3s might be close, actually.

And Beal at #4 is also the right call, to my mind. Pina mentioned how Beal scored 30+ ppg two times–no small feat. Harden did it three times, but there’s not a long list of guys who have done it at all. And Shap compared him to Paul George, which isn’t inappropriate. A lot of it is roles (great player on a bad/not great team in WSH; not a PG in PHO, nor is D Booker, injury issues). The interesting part for me is what happens if Beal isn’t so good, and he ends up being the Clippers 9th, 10th, or 11th best player–so what? What if he plays 8 or 900 hellish minutes like KPJ (which won’t happen), or he’s incredibly bad all around like Avery Bradley (also impossible)? It would just be more minutes for Bogie, Dunn, DJJ and Nic Batum, right? Is there a chance that he’s terrible like Marcus Morris and Ty Lue continually overplays him? Even that seems unlikely. And what if he’s great, if he thrives, if Harden and others make him better, if JVG upgrades his defense like he did with Harden? It’s hard to overstate how much better Harden makes other players with his passing, court vision, shooting, the attention he commands, and everything else. He probably deserves more credit for Norm’s giant leap last year than people realize. With Harden leading the way, Kawhi and Zu could easily unlock and make Beal better in all sorts of exciting ways–imagine those three guys and Beal with Nic Batum.

Worries about a significant defensive downgrade because Dunn and DJJ probably won’t be starters and there’s going to be an identity shift seem completely overblown and inconsequential to me. The defense is there if the Clippers need it; it’s easy enough to make the adjustments. Harden’s defense was vastly improved under JVG last year as part of the general team upgrade, and Beal and Collins are both candidates to show significant improvement in the same program and in similar ways. They won’t be great, but they’ll make plays and hustle and won’t be bad or eyesores. DJJ is being replaced in the starting lineup by Kawhi, not too shabby, and Collins’ size and athleticism will make a big difference. The Clippers will have all sorts of defensive dogs available to unleash, and it should be interesting to see how the rotations play out. The thing to emphasize and look for is what JVG does with this new roster, and how he builds on everything that he and TLue accomplished with defense last season. JVG just sitting around and hanging out with Chris Paul is an awesome prospect in itself.

Heard Buha giving the Lakers an A+ on their offseason, simply for signing Luka and getting him invested, a long-term/big picture win. He admitted A-/B+ for the actual present roster, losing DFS and signing Ayton, Marcus Smart, and LaRavia. Just the same old Ringz/Laker exceptionalism. Compare Lopez, Beal, Collins and CP3 if you want to see what an A+ really looks like. We’ll take our chances.

Good work by Pina and Shap. Go Clippers!

In other news, Bogie is the captain of the Serbian team, continuing to play with Jokic. Bogie went 1-6 from deep as Serbia crushed Greece (no Giannis, I don’t think) in another preparation game.