Why the Los Angeles Clippers are cursed

Over the course of their 54-year franchise history, the Los Angeles Clippers have seen very few things go their way. It’s been an arduous stretch, where positive moments are generally few and far between. Clippers fans have to really search for minor positives to keep their faith, which has been tested over the last few decades. Statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

The Clippers were originally the Buffalo Braves when they joined the NBA in 1970. The franchise moved to San Diego in 1978, and eventually Los Angeles in 1984. Unfortunately for them, the crosstown Lakers drafted Magic Johnson in 1979, and were winning titles throughout the 1980s.

The Clippers never had a chance to establish themselves in their new Southern California home.

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The Clippers were owned by Donald Sterling for 33 years, and were a laughingstock of the league for nearly that entire stint. Sterling was known for refusing to open up the checkbook to sign talented players, and was also not particularly the most upstanding individual. Bleacher Report and other outlets chronicled his behavior over the years.

He was forced to sell the team after an unflattering controversy in 2014.

It can be really difficult for an NBA team to experience continued futility, considering that the league tries to position its worst teams to have the best draft picks. Los Angeles had the number one pick in 1998, and could have set up their team for years to come by picking Vince Carter, Dirk Nowitzki or Paul Pierce.

Instead, they selected Michael Olowokandi, who was not a difference maker. The New York Post and NBC Sports Boston count Olowakandi as one of the biggest NBA Draft busts ever.

The more recent version of the Clippers made big offseason splashes to acquire talent. One of those moves included the acquisition of two-time NBA champion Kawhi Leonard.

Unfortunately, Leonard has been injured at critical junctures, including the 2021 Western Conference Semifinals, and 2023 first round. It’s hard to win in the NBA without star talent being available.

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Even without Leonard, Los Angeles advanced to the Western Conference Finals in 2021. They had a chance to split the first two games with the Phoenix Suns, but lost in embarrassing fashion at the end of Game 2.

The Clippers allowed an alley-oop dunk to DeAndre Ayton at the buzzer that left the team in a 2-0 hole they wouldn’t recover from.

Kobe Bryant is a renowned Los Angeles Lakers megastar, but people forget that he had tension with the organization. Throughout the 2000s, he often clashed with management with regard to his contract, and the type of talent they should bring in. ESPN broke down the relationship in 2004.

Bryant teased Lakers management by wearing Clippers gear, as if to communicate that he could play for their rivals. Of course, this never materialized, but Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said that it was a legitimate possibility in the mid 2000s.

Los Angeles also had the number overall pick in the 1988 NBA Draft, and selected Danny Manning from the University of Kansas. Manning was a star collegiate player, and by many measures, had a solid NBA career. However, he wasn’t the franchise-altering piece the Clippers hoped he would be.

The Clippers have never made it to the NBA Finals, despite having coaches in their history who have won titles. Dr. Jack Ramsey coached the team in the Braves days before he won a title with the Portland Trail Blazers. Larry Brown coached the Clippers before he won a title with the Detroit Pistons. Doc Rivers won a title with the Boston Celtics before he coached the Clippers.

Once again, the Los Angeles Clippers enter the NBA postseason as one of the most talented teams in the league. It remains to be seen whether that ability will help overcome one of the most consistently tortured histories in all of professional sports.

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