I know this is the “Diary of a Los Angeles Clippers fan” and not a diary of me, so I naturally try to keep it as strictly basketball as possible. It doesn’t always work out that way though, and I can’t help but stray from that a bit today, given the parallels I’m seeing between my life and the Clippers season.
Lost? Let me enlighten you.
Through the past week and a half or so, I’ve dealt with being in a rather scary car accident, the unexpected annoyance that comes with shelling out some $ for repairs, and the hopelessly futile feeling of driving around town looking for what appears to be an impossible-to-find car part. Every spot you go to says they have the part, each time you get excited at the search being over, only to eventually find out it doesn’t fit and that you’re back on the wild goose chase.
Sound familiar to any Clippers fans out there? It should.
Pardon the obvious comparison, but this season has been what amounts to one long car crash and supporting the team is like surviving the impact. Blake Griffin‘s injury, the Memphis water-main game and more were all literally accidents, so it’s not a stretch to label them a wreck. Firing Mike Dunleavy – first as coach, then GM – are your standard shabby attempts at repairing the damages received and Baron Davis, Eric Gordon and great draft position are the temporary excitement you feel at thinking you found the answer, only to have it all fall apart.
To a lesser extent, you can even call Kim Hughes, Travis Outlaw, Steve Blake, etc the quick fix-it answers that don’t fix much of anything in the long run. Hey, it’s better than doing nothing at all right? (Please say yes, it eases the pain.)
And since most middle to lower-class income families can’t just afford to go pick up a new Ferrari after an accident, you’re usually stuck making minor improvements to your car and learning to love accept the dents, scratches and doors that don’t quite close right.
For the Clippers and their fans, the forces out of their control (Donald Sterling) have relegated them to settling for less (Brian Skinner, Ricky Davis, etc) and constantly trying to mask ineptitude, poor performances and bitter frustrations with a hope that never arrives. Think I’m lying? We’re banking our future (or at least a part of it) on the chance that LeBron James might come to the Clippers and a decent draft lottery position.
Hmm, cap space for a big-name free agent and high draft picks will save us?
Sorry to crack the half-full glasses of you optimists out there in Clipper Nation, but I’ve seen this movie before and I’m not buying it.
One accident is enough for me and I won’t be fooled into thinking the Clippers are a high-end automotive machine. If you’re reading this and wondering why we Clips fans still support the team, well I guess Hoopties need love to.
So until the day we get a new non-Sterling brand engine, I’ll keep my fingers crossed that President Obama will either pull a General Motors and save us from basketball bankruptcy or create a national “Cash 4 Clippers” program.
-Will.
“Diary of a Clippers Fan” will be published Mondays and Thursdays during the regular season.
