Los Angeles Clippers say they can play with anybody and want a title
The widely held assumption is that the Clippers and every other team in the NBA saw the gap between them and the Golden State Warriors widen over the summer.
Never mind that the Clippers still have their core of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. Or that the Clippers added quality and depth to a reserve corps that already included sixth man of the year Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers. And that the Clippers have one of the best coaches in the NBA in Doc Rivers.
The Warriors signed one of the NBA’s best players in free agent Kevin Durant and put him on a team with two-time NBA most valuable player Stephen Curry and All-Stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. The sense is that a Warriors team that lost in the NBA Finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers only got stronger.
But that doesn’t mean the Clippers are going to back down just because the Warriors are being called the league’s new super team.
“I think we can play with anybody, and we don’t feel like there’s a gap,” Rivers said at the Clippers’ media day Monday in Playa Vista. “But that’s what we have to prove and I think everyone has to prove that. I know history very well in this league and there have been a lot of super teams put together — quote, unquote super teams — and I know the history. I feel comfortable where we’re at.”
Rivers and his players also said they feel comfortable speaking out about the social issues of the day.
They have discussed how the Clippers as a whole will approach the protest against racial injustice that has taken on new meaning since San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has begun taking a knee during the national anthem.
“It’s a very relevant and important issue,” Rivers said. “Whatever we do, we’ll do as a group and we’ll do together hopefully. But I’m happy that we’re having those discussions. I think they’re important discussions and I love the fact that we actually are talking about things other than basketball.”
Said veteran guard J.J. Redick: “I think it’s important that athletes recognize that they have a voice. There’s this old saying like athletes should just stick to sports or whatever and stay out of politics, stay out of social issues and all that.
“But I think today’s athletes realize, whether it’s through social media or whether it’s through media coverage … that we can kind of control and sort of get our message and our narrative out there, and I think the more active that athletes are, the better it is for everyone.”
Perhaps the best news of the day, before the Clippers open training camp Tuesday at UC Irvine, is that both Griffin (left quadriceps tendon) and Paul (broken right hand) are 100% sound after suffering season-ending injuries against the Portland Trail Blazers last April in the playoffs.
“I had a good summer of rehab, working out and getting ready,” Griffin said.
Said Paul: “I’m good to go.”
This will be the final season for Clippers forward Paul Pierce, 38, who announced Monday that he will retire after the season, his 19th in the NBA.
“I just wanted to kind of go out on my own terms,” Pierce said, “and have one more opportunity to win a championship with this group.”
The big three of Griffin, Paul and Jordan are entering their sixth season together. And for them and their teammates the aim is not just to i advance beyond the second round of the playoffs or oust the Warriors.
“We have an ultimate goal, and that’s to be NBA champions, and that’s the reason that we’re here today,” Jordan said. “That’s the reason we work as hard as we do in the summertime, to be the best team in the NBA and to be NBA champions, period.”
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
