The LA Clippers are a mess. They are in 14th place in the NBA Western Conference; realize there are only 15 teams in that conference; their record as of this morning is 6-18. Late last week, the Clippers basically fired Chris Paul; they simply told him to leave the team and go home; they said they would “work with him and his representatives” related to any future endeavors he might be interested in.
Chris Paul is 39 years old; his skills have diminished due to the passage of time. Having said that, Chris Paul will probably be a first-ballot Hall of Fame selection in the near future; yes, his skills have diminished, but they have diminished from an exceptionally high level. Moreover, Chris Paul has been a positive influence in the league and as a union member for many years; he had earned a less insulting end to his time with the Clippers.
A glance at the Clippers’ roster might shed some light on why that team is mired in a winning percentage of .250:
- Even with Chris Paul sent home, there are seven players over the age of 30.
- Three of those seven are over the age of 35.
- Kawai Leonard is 34 and needs extensive load management.
- Bradley Beal is 32 and is already injured and out for the rest of the year.
I have no idea who are the folks in the Clippers’ organization responsible for roster construction, but I do think that – – maybe – – those roster constructors are the ones that should be sent home.
Moving on … In college basketball, the Big East seems to be having a revival. Seton Hall, UConn and Villanova all have only one loss on their record so far in 2025. However, I think there is another dimension to the Big East Revival – – the return of coaches who are sideline presences.
In the old days, the Big East had some great teams AND the Big East had coaches who were usually described as “colorful”, but that underestimated them. Remember coaches like John Thompson, Lou Carnesecca, Rollie Massamino, Jim Boeheim, Rick Pitino, PJ Carlesimo and Jim Calhoun. Sometimes, those coaches put on nearly as entertaining a show on the sidelines as the players did on the court. The conference went through a “down cycle” but seems on the way back now and interesting coaches are back in charge of programs.
- Shaheen Holloway at Seton Hall
- Shaka Smart at Marquette
- Kevin Willard at Villanova
Those three guys are sideline presences, but all of them have to be rated at a tier below Rick Pitino at St. John’s and Dan Hurley at UConn. Rick Pitno was in the “old version” of the Big East and did battle with those guys listed above; he is back in the conference again with the Red Storm. Dan Hurley would have fit in perfectly with the old cadre of Big East coaches save for the fact that in the last 1980s, Dan Hurley was just about ready to get his learners permit to drive a car.
And just to add a juicy storyline to Big East basketball, Rick Pitino will necessarily face his son, Richard Pitino, because “Pitino the Younger” oversees basketball at Xavier starting with this season. My interest in Big East Basketball is on the upswing …
One more note in college basketball today … I was scanning the Top 25 rankings this morning for men’s college basketball and noticed that there are no “small schools” or “mid-majors” there. There are some teams that I do not normally associate with top-shelf college basketball, but the schools that fit that description are all “big guys” on the college landscape. Probably the closest thing to a “small school” on the list would be St. John’s ranked 23rd in the AP Poll – – and in the world of basketball, St. John’s is hardly a “little guy”.
I suspect that this situation is related to the NIL environment and the ability of bigger schools to have bigger NIL budgets leading to concentration of talent at the bigger schools. You can decry that if you wish, but I think it is a key element in the reality of college basketball in 2025/2026. We will see in March 2026 if there are “Cinderellas” out there looking to knock off these bug guys – – or if the phenomenon of “Tournament Cinderellas” is going into decline.
Finally, this from former UCLA coach, John Wooden:
“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………
Bradley Beal out for the season? Shocking!