5 reasons why LA Clippers need to be taken seriously as NBA Championship contenders for the 2021-22 season

The LA Clippers have been among the elite contenders in the NBA in the last two campaigns, but the team has been unable to put things together in the NBA Playoffs yet.

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George arriving in the 2019 offseason made the LA Clippers a title contender, but the team will be without the two-time Finals MVP for a big part of the upcoming campaign, and possibly the entire season.

While many expect the LA Clippers to fall from the group of contenders in the Western Conference, that might not necessarily be the case, as the team showed (in a small sample size) that it could be led by Paul George in big postseason series.

Five reasons why the LA Clippers could still be contenders in the 2021-22 NBA season

The LA Clippers lost Leonard midway through the 2021 NBA Playoffs in Game 4 of the Western Semis against the top-seeded Utah Jazz. Leonard partially tore his ACL and underwent successful surgery.

Leonard's absence will certainly hinder the LA Clippers early, but head coach Tyronn Lue and a group of veterans on the roster could make it work.

In this article, we will give you five reasons why the LA Clippers should be taken seriously in the upcoming NBA season.

Without further ado, let us take a look.

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#5 Three-point shooting

Paul George #13 of the LA Clippers reacts as he falls to the court under Luke Kennard and Nicolas Batum.

The LA Clippers led the entire NBA in three-point shooting percentage during the 2020-21 regular season. Although Kawhi Leonard was a great part of that achievement by making 39.8% of his own three-pointers, the team as a whole made 41.1% of its threes.

In NBA history, only three teams have had a higher three-point field-goal percentage in a single season than the 2020-21 LA Clippers, and the list includes the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors.

Without Leonard, and retaining snipers such as Marcus Morris (47% from 3P last year), Nicolas Batum (40.4%), Luke Kennard (44.6%) and Reggie Jackson (43.3%), the LA Clippers could be dominant from the three-point line and even work towards making rivals pay from that area, attempting more shots from distance (they were just 14th in 3P attempts last year).

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#4 Reggie Jackson's performances

Reggie Jackson of the LA Clippers.

Reggie Jackson showed a great level of basketball last season with the LA Clippers, especially in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. Without Kawhi Leonard from the start of the 2021-22 campaign, the experienced guard could definitely provide a great offense for Tyronn Lue's team from day one.

Last season, Jackson averaged 10.7 points per game with a 45/43/81 shooting splits in the regular season (67 appearances, 43 starts). However, Jackson started in 17 of his 19 postseason appearances and averaged 17.8 points, three rebounds and three assists per game in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, with a 48/40/87 shooting split.

#3 Tyronn Lue's coaching

Head coach Tyronn Lue of the LA Clippers talks to his players.

LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue has NBA championship pedigree both as a coach and a player. He is a championship coach regardless of how much of the credit goes to LeBron James for the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers' title.

That fact is definitely a good thing for the LA Clippers, as the team already showed a different fight and resilience with Lue under tough situations in the NBA Playoffs. The same LAC core that gave away a 3-1 against the Denver Nuggets in the 2020 NBA Playoffs, stormed back from two 2-0 deficits in the first two rounds of the 2021 postseason to win those series.

That's definitely a testament to Lue's coaching, and he can guide the team to a solid 2021-22 NBA season even if Kawhi Leonard misses the entire campaign. Lue has coached in three NBA Finals series and has a 51-29 record in the NBA Playoffs.

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#2 Paul George can lead the LA Clippers in the NBA Playoffs

Paul George.

Although it has become popular to criticize Paul George harshly in recent years, he had shown that he can be a team leader in the NBA Playoffs in his days with the Indiana Pacers. He guided Indiana to two consecutive Eastern Conference Finals and fell twice to the 'Big Three' Miami Heat, which isn't a shame.

Although he was rightfully criticized for some of his struggles in the postseason with the OKC Thunder and LA Clippers, George stepped up after Leonard's injury against the Utah Jazz.

George led the team to the Eastern Conference Finals with great performances against the top-seeded Jazz in the second round. Right after Leonard got injured, George put up a 37-point performance against the Jazz in Game 5, along with 16 rebounds and five assists to give LAC a 3-2 lead.

The team eventually won the series and advanced to its first Conference Finals. Although the LA Clippers fell in six games in the WCF at the hands of the Phoenix Suns, George proved to be a solid leader. He was not perfect though, as he had some difficult moments from the free-throw line in the WCF, but George can definitely lead the LA Clippers in the upcoming campaign.

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#1 Experience and good display without Kawhi Leonard in 2021 NBA Playoffs

Head coach Tyronn Lue of the LA Clippers speaks with his team.

Overall, the LA Clippers were good without Kawhi Leonard in the 2020-21 NBA season and the postseason. Of course, they are not, by no means, a better team without the two-time Finals MVP, but the team can survive without Leonard's prowess.

Leonard played 52 of the 72 games of the regular season, and the team went 11-9 in those matches. Given Kawhi's absence in the NBA Playoffs, others had to step up on both ends of the floor, with Reggie Jackson and even Terance Mann making solid efforts for the team in the postseason.

The LA Clippers had a 4-4 record without Leonard in the postseason and the experience of having played on the big stages without the best player on the roster could help for the upcoming 2021-22 NBA season.

The LA Clippers will not be a better team without Leonard, but the squad could remain amongst the top contenders in the Western Conference Finals, although coming out of it might be a long shot.

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