Los Angeles Clippers: Predicting the 2019 regular season record

The Los Angeles Clippers are entering the most exciting season in the history of the franchise with a real shot of winning the NBA Championship.

The Los Angeles Clippers could make history this season and win the franchise’s first-ever NBA Championship. With the duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the excitement around this season is even higher than that of the Lob City Clippers with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.

Clipper fans are going to have to wait to see the team in full strength as Paul George is still recovering from his two shoulder surgeries. It appears as if George will return in early-to-mid November. Our guess is November 11th at home against the Toronto Raptors, but we have no inside insight.

For now, Clipper fans just get to see Kawhi Leonard in action, which is not a bad thing in the slightest. Leonard was the only star on a Raptors team to win it all last season and should be just fine without George for 10 or so games.

More from LA Sports Hub

• Lakers: 5 Players to Target Through Trades to make another championship run
• LA Chargers: Week 8 against Denver Broncos is a must-win
• LA Rams: Jared Goff wants to keep the Los Angeles title streak going
• Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles Clippers interested in Rajon Rondo
• LA Chargers: Justin Herbert wins AFC Rookie of the Month

It is hard to predict the Clippers’ record at the end of the season because of the question marks around George’s health and the need for load management with Kawhi. Their over/under is still high at 54 wins, courtesy of the Action Network.

Keep that number in mind as we attempt to break down the Los Angeles Clippers’ record by opponent this season to find a landing point at a final record prediction.

First, we will look at the four Western Conference teams that the Clippers have three games against this season: the Portland Trailblazers, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies.

There are two playoff teams, a borderline playoff team and a tanking team in that mix. Respectively, I see the Clippers going 2-1, 2-1, 3-0 and 3-0 against these four teams for a starting point of 10-2.

The rest of the Northwest consists of the Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves. Utah is a solid defensive team that is a tough matchup and it Oklahoma may have a chip on its shoulder and will be looking to prove something in one of these games.

Respectively, I see the Clippers going 2-2, 3-1 and 4-0 against the rest of the Northwest. This leads to a cumulative record of 19-5.

The rest of the Southwest consists of the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Pelicans. Houston catches the Clippers on November 13, which may or may not have George back. Houston is primed to be a much better regular-season team than people expect and will be a rare team to win three games against the Clippers this year.

The Spurs and Pelicans are both solid and will steal one game at home because of the nature of the NBA. That gives us a 7-5 record against the rest of the Southwest and a 26-10 record overall.

Finally, we have the Pacific Division against the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns. Respectively, I see the Clippers going 2-2, 3-1, 3-1 and 4-0 for a 12-4 record against their division counterparts and a 38-14 record against the Western Conference as a whole.

The Eastern Conference is much easier and with two games against each team, the Clippers could avoid too many shock losses and can rack up the win total.

The Atlantic Division consists of the Toronto Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks. I see LA going 2-0 against Toronto, Brooklyn and New York while splitting with Philly and Boston for an 8-2 record against the Atlantic.

The Central consists of the Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers. The Bucks catch the Clippers without Paul George early in the year and then are home against the Clippers in early December.

That early December game is the start of a six-game road trip and I think the Bucks get the best of the Clippers are the only team to go undefeated against LA this season. I think the Pistons will steal one at home because of a big day from Blake Griffin and Indiana, Chicago and Cleveland all go 0-2 against the Clippers.

Despite losing both against the Bucks, the Clippers still finish with a 7-3 against the Central, moving their Eastern Conference record up to 15-5.

Finally, we have the Southeast, which consists of the Orlando Magic, Miami Heat, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards and Atlanta Hawks. As long as the Clippers have one of their stars playing in each of these games, the only team I can see taking a game is the Miami Heat.

However, because upsets always happen in the NBA, we will say that the Clippers go 8-2 against the Southeast. That brings the total Eastern Conference record up to 23-7.

The end result is a 61-21 record for the Los Angeles Clippers. That might seem high but it is right on par for what the best record in the league usually is, which is what the team is aiming for.

That is seven games of wiggle room for the Los Angeles Clippers over the win total. So if you are confident in the team’s health and think they will be the one seed in the West, then chances are that the Clippers will be well over 54 wins.