When the Los Angeles Clippers traded Tobias Harris to the Philadelphia 76ers ahead of the Feb. 7 trade deadline, it seemed like a clear signal that the Clippers were prepared to tank the rest of the season. Apparently, that was not the case.
This past week, a report surfaced that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer still wants the team to make the playoffs, which does not come as much of a surprise because, in a nutshell, the more games the Clippers play, the more money Ballmer makes.
It's not a complicated process.
However, Ballmer is clearly not thinking about the long game, or even the next few months.
Here's the thing: if Los Angeles makes the playoffs, it will lost its first-round pick to the Boston Celtics. If it misses the playoffs, it will end up with a lottery pick that it can either use to draft another young piece or as another asset in a potential Anthony Davis trade.
Is getting the eighth seed and getting curbstomped in the first round really worth losing that opportunity?
If Ballmer actually cares about the future of the team and isn't putting his entire focus on lining his pockets this season, then he will realize that making the playoffs is not exactly a good thing.
Of course, you can't tell the players to tank. They are going to want to give 100 percent no matter what, so if the Clippers end up qualifying for the postseason because their guys tried really hard, then there is nothing you can do.
But pushing for your team to make the playoffs just to add a few more games of revenue is silly and incredibly short-sighted.
Right now, Los Angeles is a bit behind in the arms race for Davis.
The Clippers don't have a whole lot of established young talent on their roster, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Montrezl Harrell representing the only truly well-known commodities. Jerome Robinson is also an interesting, but he has shown next to nothing on the NBA level yet.
Outside of that, Los Angeles does not have all that much to offer the Pelicans other than the Miami Heat's 2021 unprotected first-round pick that it snared in the Harris deal.
With the Boston Celtics seeming prepared to offer up Jayson Tatum and a host of other future picks that includes a first-rounder from the Memphis Grizzlies and the New York Knicks having the potential of offering a package headlined by the No. 1 overall pick, the Clippers are currently on the outside looking in.
Adding another lottery pick into the picture, though, would definitely change things for Los Angeles in the Davis sweepstakes, as it would make the Clips' offer that much more attractive.
The funny thing is, even then, the Clippers still might not have enough to land Anthony Davis, as they simply don't have any star talent on their roster, but without a lottery selection in this year's draft, the team's stable of asses becomes that much thinner.
Heck, even if Los Angeles isn't able to pry Davis away from New Orleans, wouldn't it like to be able to add another young player into the fold?
Remember: whether the Clippers get Anthony Davis or not, they are going to have a whole lot of cap space this summer, so if they aren't able to land Davis, they will still have the financial wherewithal to sign two max players. At that point, LA could also add in another young player to make its roster deeper going forward in addition to potentially inking two All-Stars to long-term deals.
There really is no angle in which Ballmer can take where he can make a legitimate case that making the playoffs is a positive thing. Unless he seriously believes that the Clippers can make a playoff run (they can't), what purpose will Los Angeles serve in the postseason other than representing a sacrificial lamb for one of the upper echelon Western Conference teams in the first round?
Yeah, there is that argument that getting the young guys playoff experience will be beneficial, but let's face it: that “experience” is not going to mean much of anything if the Clips aren't able to improve the roster as much as possible moving forward.
While the Clippers have a decent foundation for the future mainly because of their cap space, they aren't even remotely close to being a contender at the moment, and they still need to add other pieces in order to even enter that discussion.
So, tell me, Steve: what exactly is the point of getting swept in the first round and losing a valuable asset for the summer? Not when it might cost you Anthony Davis.
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