The “213 Era” is truly over.
Paul George is gone, having signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, and Kawhi Leonard isn’t healthy enough to participate in training camp.
Unlike the previous five seasons, when championship hopes were pinned on the two superstars, the Clippers head into a training camp that begins Tuesday in Hawaii with re-signed James Harden, eight new players, one familiar face and a host of questions.
For starters, the Clippers need to figure out who will fill the void left by George, who was their go-to player when Leonard was dealing with his knee issues in recent years. George’s impact on the court – 20-plus points per game, a strong presence on the boards and overall length – will be difficult to replace.
Coach Tyronn Lue, though, has plenty of options that could complement a solid core of Terance Mann, Ivica Zubac, Harden and Leonard (when healthy). It will be Lue’s focus when camp begins.
“When you lose a player of PG’s caliber it’s always tough to replace that kind of player,” Lue said last week. “We understand it on both sides of the basketball. With that being said, James and Kawhi, like you said, are our focus offensively. … Everyone else has to fit in around us to make sure we have the right spacing, the right guys with the ball in their hands making the right plays. So, that has to be our main focus now.”
Derrick Jones Jr., Kevin Porter Jr. and Mo Bamba all could play their way into Lue’s rotation, while Amir Coffey, Bones Hyland and Jordan Miller, who dominated the G League last season (18.6 points, 5.6 rebounds per game) are also in the mix.
Lue said it’s going to be “a competition.”
New-old face Nicolas Batum, who returns to the Clippers after one season with the 76ers, is sure to find minutes this season. He was traded to the Sixers in the Harden deal early last season.
“He’s a great connector. He’s not looking for shots or looking at stats for how many assists or how many shots he’s taking. He just wants to win and do whatever it takes to do that,” Lue said. “He’s a winning player and I’m very excited to have him back.”
Here are five questions the team is facing entering training camp this week.
What to do about Kawhi?
Here we go again. The season hasn’t yet tipped off and Leonard’s troublesome surgically repaired right knee is an issue. He reportedly had a procedure in May on the same knee that limited his play during last season’s playoffs, then he was replaced on the Team USA Olympic roster in July and now has residual swelling.
Lawrence Frank, the Clippers’ president of basketball operations, said the swelling has “significantly gone down, almost gone,” but Leonard could still miss the start of the 2024-25 season. He already has been ruled out of training camp, leaving more questions than answers about the durability of the 33-year-old small forward.
The six-time All-Star and two-time NBA Finals MVP has not finished three of the past four seasons because of knee injuries and missed the entire 2021-22 season after having surgery.
Will this season be different? Leonard had one of his most productive seasons last year, playing 68 games – the most in a Clippers jersey – before his knee gave out during the first-round series against the Dallas Mavericks. Now, his knee can’t even start the season, which makes the decision to give Leonard a three-year $153 million contract extension last January a head-scratching move.
At 35, does Harden have enough in the tank to carry the team?
Lue didn’t hesitate when asked how much more will be expected of Harden without George and Russell Westbrook, both of whom signed with different teams.
“More pick-and-rolls. Scoring the basketball more, taking more shots,” Lue said with a smirk. “With the responsibility of being one of the best two players with Kawhi, they got to make everyone else better as well, and he understands that.”
Lue might have been joking, but in all seriousness, Harden will need to take on a bigger role to make up for the absence of PG and Westbrook (Denver Nuggets). He will be counted on not only to pick up the scoring slack left by PG’s departure but also handle the ball and facilitate the offense.
Harden showed last season he could handle more than the ball in the playoffs, averaging 21.3 points against Dallas after Leonard went down and George all but disappeared.
Who fills George’s role?
Will it be Norman Powell? Jones? Porter? All are capable scorers; all have established resumes. Early indications, however, point to a strong competition between Jones and Porter.
Jones, known for his athleticism, was key during the Mavericks’ run to the NBA Finals last season, averaging 9.1 points (up from 8.6 points during the regular season). He started 66 games for the Mavs last season.
Porter came to the Clippers after playing briefly in Greece late last season. He was all but dismissed from the NBA after taking a plea deal related to a domestic violence case. The Clippers signed the talented yet controversial guard, who averaged 19.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.4 steals in his final season with the Houston Rockets.
His numbers made him an attractive addition for the Clippers, who need someone to help make up for George’s 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 47.1% shooting.
“He definitely can make an impact,” Lue said. “He’s a great talent. It’s going to be my job to make sure we get the best out of him.”
Who among the new faces will step up?
Count on Jones and Porter to emerge quickly as players the Clippers will count on; they come in with solid credentials. But Kris Dunn, a former lottery pick who came to the Clippers from the Utah Jazz in a sign-and-trade, could also make an early impact. He averaged 9.3 points and 3.7 rebounds in his previous two seasons with the Jazz but will face tough competition at the backup guard spot from Powell.
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Having lost both their backup centers from last season, the Clippers need the 7-foot Bamba to step up quickly. Batum, who played for the Clippers for four seasons, also could see action at the center spot.
Is this the year Mann grabs the spotlight?
With a limited Leonard and a long-gone PG, Mann could emerge from their shadows and become a major player. He already had established himself as a key role player, dropping a career-high 39 points during the 2021 Western Conference semifinals as Leonard watched from the bench. Last season, Mann shot 34.8% from 3-point range and averaged 8.8 points in 77 games (71 starts).
Mann also has extra incentive. He signed a three-year, $47 million extension on Friday, locking him in through the 2027-28 season.
“We have great faith in Terance,” Frank said. “Obviously, we place a high value on him, not just because he’s a very, very good basketball player, but he’s extremely high character and he’s about doing all the right things.”