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Dallas Mavericks: Why Clippers Exit Means Mavs Win

By Reid Hanson

Mar 26, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (6), guard Chris Paul (3) and forward Blake Griffin (32) come off the bench in the fourth quarter of the game against the Sacramento Kings at Staples Center. Kings won 98-97. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 26, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (6), guard Chris Paul (3) and forward Blake Griffin (32) come off the bench in the fourth quarter of the game against the Sacramento Kings at Staples Center. Kings won 98-97. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers have been linked in one way or another over the past few years. Here’s why a Clippers loss is a Mavs win…

The Dallas Mavericks have plenty to watch for this postseason. Likely headlining the list, is the success (or failure) of the Los Angeles Clippers. Armed with players like Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan (just to name a few) the Los Angeles Clippers have been considered a budding young team with heaps of unrealized potential.

Unfortunately for them that has been the case for far too long and without any postseason success to speak of, the Clippers franchise is on the cusp of a closing window.

The Clippers

Both Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are free agents this summer. If the Clippers seem as though they are finally turning the corner and becoming a legitimate contender like Golden State and San Antonio, then the two will probably stay. But if it prematurely ends in the same disappointing way it has been since the beginning, one of or both could cut bait and build somewhere fresh.

Chris Paul, a month away from his 32nd birthday, is in the winter of his superstar career. His 18.1 points, 9.2 assists, and 5 rebounds per game still rate high amongst his peers, but it’s hard to see that continuing much further. Rest assured CP3 is feeling the urgency right now.

Blake Griffin, 28, is feeling a similar sense of urgency. His next deal will be his last max deal he’ll play under while in his physical prime. He likely has no interest playing for a team that doesn’t have championship hopes and expectations.

If Griffin and Paul leave, why would it be for Dallas?

It wouldn’t be necessarily. The Dallas Mavericks would win simply by the addition to the NBA free agent talent pool. Let’s say a team like the Lakers is interested in adding a point guard like Jrue Holiday (a player that would fit perfectly in Dallas) but instead, they make a run at the now-available, CP3. That opens things up for the Mavs to go after a player they would otherwise lose out on. Same story with Blake Griffin, only at a different position.

But this is only possible if the two players become weary of the Clippers postseason ability. If the Clippers make it to the Western Conference Finals, they’ll stay. If they get bounced in the first round or beat handily in the second, they may just opt to check out the market.

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Karma

The Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers have a recent history of ban blood. The always-chippy contests between the two received a boost of adrenaline two years ago when Clippers free agent center, DeAndre “I’m the worst person on the planet” Jordan royally hosed the Mavericks franchise.

As we all still remember, DeAndre Jordan and the Dallas Mavericks came to a verbal agreement to sign with Dallas.

Doing so committed max money to DeAndre and removed Dallas from free agent conversations with other available free agents.

CP3, Blake Griffin, and Doc Rivers all covertly swooped in to talk DeAndre out of his verbal contract with Dallas and back into the arms of a “real contender” as a third-wheel to the Chris Paul and Blake Griffin Show.

I have to admit, it would be pretty satisfying to see those two leave and DeAndre be stuck alone to carry a franchise himself.

Next: Throwback: Why DeAndre Jordan is the Worst Person in the World

The trickle-down effect of an early exit for the Los Angeles Clippers is significant. It potentially destroys a franchise and increases the odds of a Mavs’ free agent signing this offseason. And, of course, it’s a big heaping spoonful of karma for our buddy DeAndre.

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