Ten seasons ago, the Clippers opened their preseason by visiting four of their Western Conference rivals. They went to Portland, Utah, Sacramento and finally to Phoenix before they opened the doors to their home arena.
Fans had a lot of reasons to be excited — the team hired Doc Rivers in the offseason to coach and was about to enter the season as bonafide contenders. The season, Rivers felt, was about to be theirs. And, their arena should reflect that.
So, the Clippers covered the banners at Staples Center celebrating the Lakers’ championships and the retired numbers of their all-time greats, and instead featured images of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and the rest of that Clippers’ core.