There are particular groups as a sportswriter that you just mustn’t belief. Regardless of the best way the Detroit Lions are enjoying, their followers received’t hesitate to inform you a size-14 steel-toe boot is about to drop at any second. Everyone knows what tortured souls I’m speaking about so let’s spare them additional anguish, and simply single out the one which persons are falling for, but once more: The Los Angeles Clippers.
For me to consider that the Clips, or a staff with James Harden, are ever really contenders, they’ll should be up 25 with 3 seconds left within the clinching recreation of the NBA Finals. I don’t care in the event that they swept by way of the primary three rounds of the playoffs and are going through the Bucks with out Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, I wouldn’t experience with LA’s stepchild.
This will likely sound like I’m hating, and that’s most likely 75 % of it, however the different quarter is motivated by self-preservation. You know the way many media members seemed like full morons for hitching their hopes to Aaron Rodgers this season? Innumerable. (The worst was most likely Mike Greenberg and his Jets watch celebration that changed into a childhood reenactment of his most traumatic sports activities reminiscences, however nonetheless, innumerable media members.)
I don’t care about Ty Lue’s rotations, Harden’s dedication to enjoying basketball, Kawhi Leonard’s resurgence, or no matter Paul George is doing effectively — the percentages of solely a type of stars being wholesome and completely happy come April far outweigh this factor truly coming to fruition. This factor being a Clippers postseason run to an NBA title.
At 21-12, Los Angeles is doing what any staff with that form of expertise needs to be doing. The Sixers had been 26 video games above .500 a yr in the past, had the league MVP, and Harden’s juju permeated like a burnt roux in a batch of gumbo. Philly went out within the second spherical, once more. And we’re going to combine the Beard’s historical past of flameouts with a franchise as incompetent and unfortunate because the Clippers?
Whereas I’m longing for Billy Crystal and whoever attends Clippers video games in blue and pink, this isn’t about that. It’s a warning to fellow sportswriters and prognosticators to assume twice, thrice, 100 occasions a girl earlier than placing your perception in Santa Claus on the web.
If I’ve realized something about this job, it’s that individuals solely ever bear in mind your predictions in the event that they’re flat-out terrible. Nicely, that, and in the event you’re nameless sufficient nobody actually reads or remembers. I may take advantage of off-base prediction — not editorial error — ever, and the one individuals who would possibly say one thing are my coworkers, and the possibilities of that occuring are 10-1.
So, actually, I suppose this piece was about firing strays on the Los Angeles Clippers all alongside. Alright then, job effectively accomplished, onto the following take.