Half way through a remarkably solid season, the Los Angeles Clippers have found a way to remind everyone that they are in fact still the Los Angeles Clippers.
On Wednesday, news leaked out that the Clippers had randomly and needlessly asked their most renowned super fan, Clipper Darrell, to stop using the word “Clipper” in his name. The decision was oddly timed (he’s been using the name for over a decade) and poorly thought out (they tried to bribe him, a well-known season ticket holder, with season tickets), so it was no surprise, really, when 99.9 percent of the population decided to come out in support of Clipper Darrell.
Three interesting people among that 99.9 percent, though? The Clippers ‘own stars: Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan. When news of what had transpired between Clipper Darrell and the team that they play for came out, all three men swiftly and soundly took to their Twitter accounts and expressed support for the franchise’s most famous fan.
Here is a screengrab of their tweets, via Larry Brown Sports:
By Thursday, Griffin and Jordan's tweets had been deleted. Could they maybe have gotten a nudge from their notoriously inept organization to do that? We'll never know, probably. But it is weird that two out of three players would make that call. Just saying.
Here is a protip to any and all teams that pull a Clippers (Urban Dictionary definition: an unnecessary, stupid blunder): don’t try to silence the public outcry after the fact. Make the decision, live with it and then move on. Trying to force a cover up will only keep the story alive longer and make the proceedings that much messier than they need to be.
L.A.’s other team has always been an embarrassment. It was an embarrassment when Donald Sterling made it the laughing stock of the sports world on a seemingly annual basis. It was an embarrassment when a mere year after finally coming up with a better end result than the Lakers in 2005-06, it reverted back to its regular pitiful and underwhelming non-factor status. And it’s still an embarrassment now, despite the fact that the Clippers currently have the top record in the Pacific Division.
When being an embarrassment becomes a part of your DNA, not even the commissioner of the league handing you the NBA’s top point guard can save you. When being an embarrassment is part of your DNA, you wind up doing stuff like going to war with Clipper Darrell.
You know, because that’s just who you are.
Tune in next week when the Clippers tell elementary school kids that Santa isn't real.
(Kudos to Larry Brown Sports for the find)
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