Los Angeles Clippers shooting guard Paul George undoubtedly expected to win a title when he joined the team last year, but now will be forced to watch the Los Angeles Lakers receive that prized jewelry instead.
That’s because the Clippers open up their 2020-21 season on Tuesday night at Staples Center as the road team. Despite this situation, George is looking to use the event as motivation for the upcoming campaign.
Paul George on if Clips will be motivated seeing Lakers get rings: "Dec. 22 won't be the test of finding who we are, where we're at…It'll be a great ceremony for them…but [it's] the start of the marathon…we had enough motivation if we [play] someone else or the Lakers"
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) December 20, 2020
The Lakers finished the interrupted 2019-20 season with the top record in the Western Conference, but since no team enjoyed home-court advantage, the Clippers were fully expecting to play for a title.
After struggling in six games to defeat the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round, the Clippers were seemingly on track to contend for a conference title as well as a league championship.
That’s because the Clippers held a 3-1 advantage in a semifinal series against the Denver Nuggets before suffering a meltdown that sent them home two rounds short of their goal.
George’s postseason performance was especially under fire and the Clippers’ head coach, Doc Rivers, ended up getting fired as a result of the collapse.
Of course, LeBron James has always had an insatiable thirst for championships and will again be joined by Anthony Davis by his side. George’s motivation may be high, but dethroning a championship Lakers team will again be a stiff challenge.
