Clippers were being themselves in loss to Golden State

For a season that started with so much promise, the Los Angeles Clippers are back to doing what they do best – being the Clippers.

In what promised to be a battle of two Western Conference behemoths, the Clippers wilted against the Golden State Warriors, losing 115-98 in a game that felt even worse than the score indicated.

The Clippers were dull, lackadaisical and woeful from the floor (39.6%, 30.8% on 3-pt).

They went behind big early and never made a serious run.

Without reading into one game too deeply, this is a metaphor for the long, listless, lethargic path in which the franchise has been entrenched since its inception.

The saying, “always a bridesmaid” could apply to the Clippers if they had even been out of the second round.

They have not.

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They’re more like the bridesmaid’s acquaintance wishing they received a wedding invite. That’s the distance from tying the knot for this woebegone franchise.

So what happened? This year was supposed to be different. They were “on the cusp of the NBA’s ruling class”, according to a report from SB Nation.

And they were actually on top of the class on November 22nd, as the Steve Ballmer-owned franchise sat at 13-2.

In an email to my Clipper friend, I opined:

Is this the best Clippers team we have seen? Good enough to overcome the gauntlet of Warriors, Spurs, etc. in the West for the right to compete against the Cavaliers in the Finals? 

It wasn’t just me, though.

Forbes called the Clippers “The NBA’s Best Team.”

So did Vice:

And The Washington Post:

Since that point, the Clippers are 3-5. Getting smoked in three straight games on the East Coast, culminating in a double-overtime, soul-crushing loss to the Brooklyn Nets.