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#3 Playoff Rondo was a dud
The LA Clippers traded Lou Williams for Rajon Rondo in a mid-season move to prepare for a title run. After all, Playoff Rondo was spectacular last season during the LA Lakers’ own championship quest.
But what a difference one season makes!
Except for a couple of game-changing plays in the 2021 postseason, Playoff Rondo was virtually non-existent and at times was even, dare I say it, toxic to the LA Clippers’ offense and defense. In this postseason, the two-time NBA champion averaged just 4.2 points and 3.8 assists in 13 games.
If the LA Clippers could have a do-over trade, they would take back Williams in a heartbeat. Consequently, the three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner is playing significant minutes for the title-contending Atlanta Hawks.
#2 The LA Clippers going down 0-2 three times
The LA Clippers became the first team in league history to go down 0-2 twice in the same postseason and win both playoff rounds. Not content with that, they lost the first two games of the Western Conference Finals as well.
It can be argued that adversity worked in the LA Clippers’ favor as it strengthened their resolve and prepared them for a championship run so that they could exorcise last year’s playoff demons. But going down 0-2 for the third time in the postseason was just too much for them to overcome.
Furthermore, going the full seven games in the first round and six games in the second round took its toll on the LA Clippers’ health. By the time Game 6 of the WCF arrived, they didn’t have three key players and the ones remaining looked gassed, with Paul George going by willpower alone.
Even if they won against the Suns, they would have had to reach the NBA Finals by going the distance again.
#1 Kawhi Leonard’s knee injury
There’s nothing worse for a championship contender than losing its best player. Averaging 30.4 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game in 11 games in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, Kawhi Leonard was having one of the finest postseasons of his career until midway through the second round of the postseason.
But in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Utah Jazz, the injury bug bit the LA Clippers and it bit them hard. A freak injury occurred in the fourth quarter of their 118-104 win when Leonard tweaked his knee on a fastbreak.
Though they won the series in six games against the Jazz, the Phoenix Suns were a different matter. The LA Clippers would find a team in the WCF that had solid leadership, a disciplined system and talented players that were just too much for them to overcome.
Had Leonard been around, many believe that this series would’ve flipped in their favor. And they’re not wrong.
In other words, the LA Clippers would’ve won the Western Conference Finals 4-2 and they would be on their way to the NBA Finals by now. We will never know now what could have been if Leonard had been healthy enough to play even half of the series.
Instead, LA Clippers fans will have to wait until next season for another shot at the championship.
Guess the Bulls players in this quiz and it's not going to be easy!
