The Los Angeles Clippers’ horrific start to the 2025–26 season has been one of the biggest eyebrow-raisers so far. They were expected to be championship contenders, yet they sit at a dismal 5–15 and hold 13th place in a very competitive Western Conference.
James Harden has basically been carrying the burden for the Clippers this season. The Beard is averaging 27.7 points, 8.7 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game, and has single-handedly kept them in games they had no business being competitive in. Unfortunately, he is not getting much help, which is why Harden’s great numbers are not translating to wins.
What’s worse is that Harden is now 36 and doesn’t seem like he has the energy to carry a franchise like he did during his Houston Rockets days. The same can be said for Kawhi Leonard. Both are future Hall of Famers, but can either pull this sinking ship out of the endless sea? Danny Green and Paul Pierce don’t think so.
“I feel bad for James,” started Green on No Fouls Given and Playmaker. “James got traded there. He was going to play with Kawhi and a certain company. They had a good year last year. And he’s never missed the playoffs. I don’t think he’s ever missed the playoffs.”
Since his first season back in 2010, Harden has never missed the postseason. That’s impressive, considering he did it on the Thunder, Rockets, Nets, and Clippers. “This would be the first year in 17 years,” added Green, who is sure that the Clippers will bow out in the regular season itself.
“Is it time to blow up the Clippers?” asked Pierce with a real sense of urgency. “It’s time to blow it up, bro,” responded Green.
When NBA icons do not see the vision, it is probably hard for the players on the Clippers to see it either. To make matters worse, Bradley Beal, who was brought in as a scoring option, will miss the season due to hip surgery. And Leonard is not firing on all cylinders. 25 points per game is solid, but it is not leading to the results the Clippers need.
The consoling news is that the season is still young. The Clippers could streak and, at the very least, compete for a Play-In opportunity by finishing between 7th and 10th place. The bad news is that they don’t seem to have any answers on the defensive side of the ball.
Still, if there’s one thing keeping the Clippers from completely unraveling, it’s Harden’s relentless push to keep their season alive. His track record alone should be enough to spark a sense of urgency in the locker room.
Whether that streak survives may depend on whether the rest of the roster finally matches the intensity he’s been playing with. If they can’t rally behind their veteran star soon, the Clippers might find themselves facing the kind of reset no one in L.A. wanted to imagine.
