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JAMES HARDEN HAD the top down on his green 1990 Ford Mustang 5.0 convertible on the LA Clippers' opening night. As he turned off Prairie Avenue and into Intuit Dome, Harden blasted Tupac's "To Live and Die in L.A." It seemed only fitting that was Harden's soundtrack for the beginning of the Clippers' 2024-25 season. Without the departed Paul George and Russell Westbrook, the Clippers will have to win with Harden's scoring and vital playmaking until Kawhi Leonard is able to return from inflammation in his surgically repaired right knee. On this night, Harden did all he could, pouring in 29 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists. But he missed a potential winning driving floater in regulation along with a potential tying free throw late in overtime, and he had to log 40 minutes while racking up eight turnovers as the Clippers fell 116-113 to the Phoenix Suns. Intuit Dome's first night had plenty of electricity, but the Clippers lacked the star power they had last season. One of those stars will be in Intuit Dome for the first time Wednesday night as the Clippers host the Philadelphia 76ers (10 p.m. ET, ESPN). But George won't be there to help Harden deliver a win, instead playing his second game in a Sixers uniform after a bone bruise in his left knee sidelined him for the first five games. That was never part of Clippers owner Steve Ballmer's vision when he put shovel to dirt and began building the NBA's newest state-of-the-art arena over three years ago with hopes of Leonard and George raising a championship banner. But that was before a stricter collective bargaining agreement severely hampered the ability to build for the future if high-spending teams repeatedly exceed the luxury tax and the more restrictive second apron. The Clippers were willing to see out the Leonard-George era for another three years and deal with the second apron but drew a line at a fourth year with concerns over age, money and flexibility. As the George contract negotiations dragged into the summer and it began to look as if the All-Star would be leaving, they began to chart a new course for their future. For a franchise that traded four unprotected first-round picks, one protected first-round pick and two pick swaps to the Oklahoma City Thunder to get George -- a trade they are still paying off -- the Clippers had to make a decision to carefully map out their future under the new CBA landscape, especially if they felt as though they weren't sure to contend for a title with oft-injured aging stars. Unwilling to give George a no-trade clause or a four-year max deal, the Clippers filled out the roster with younger, more defense-minded players on attractive contracts. "I don't know when the blueprint changed," Ballmer told ESPN. "The truth of the matter is our situation was changing just because the guys are getting older anyway. So the way to think about it with Paul or without Paul, it started to morph on us."  FIVE YEARS AGO on Waikiki Beach, Leonard and George boarded a bright yellow and blue catamaran named "Manu Kai" with some of their teammates for a sunset boat ride. The pair were just taking their first steps together with so much promise ahead. Leonard and the Clippers returned to Hawai'i for their annual training camp in October, this time without George. Leonard was not able to practice with his teammates in camp and remains out as he tries to overcome the inflammation in his knee. When he does return, Leonard will do so with a new-look roster. "Yes, things change, players are gone," Leonard told ESPN at Clippers camp in Hawai'i last month. "Do I feel like I could win with [these] players? "I feel like I could win with the players that are on the roster." The Clippers felt as if they were one of the first teams forced to react to the new CBA second apron sanctions. Luxury tax-paying teams such as the Clippers and the Golden State Warriors face additional penalties beyond just increasing tax bills if they go into the second apron. Being that deep into the tax can cost teams access to the $5 million taxpayer midlevel exception, the ability to aggregate salaries in trades and even potentially freeze first-round picks seven years out and move a first-round pick to the end of the first round. The Suns blazed past the second apron, becoming the first $400 million team in salaries and projected tax, but they have a star in his prime in Devin Booker. With three aging stars, Ballmer had to come to grips with the fact he couldn't build around or beyond the trio because of the second apron. George said on his "Podcast P with Paul George" that he would have accepted the same three-year, $150 million extension with the Clippers at the same time Leonard signed his in January. But George grew agitated as negotiations went on, eventually tabling talks until the end of the season. George says by the time the Clippers were willing to give him the extension he initially sought, he wanted either a no-trade clause to go with it or a four-year max deal. The Clippers were willing to give George the three-year, $150 million deal, but they had no interest in adding a no-trade clause or giving a fourth year at nearly $57 million to a star who would be 37 by then. The Clippers wanted to maintain flexibility to be able to go after a younger star in his prime capable of carrying the franchise. "We wanted Paul back," Ballmer said. "We made him a big offer. We really wanted him here. We just wanted to not put ourselves in a position where we can't consistently be good. We offered them the max for three years and Philly offered them the max for four years. OK, I get it. But in terms of our trajectory and staying really good, it was really going to be an issue for us. "The truth is, with Paul not coming back, we were able to upgrade our team. We don't [sign] Derrick Jones Jr. if Paul comes back. We don't [sign] Kris Dunn, [or have] our new defensive identity. Might not have [signed] Kevin Porter Jr., Nico [Batum]. ... You could say, well, they're not Paul George. No, they're not Paul George." Those players won't replace George's 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game in his five seasons with the franchise. Scoring and the ability to create offense outside of Harden and Norman Powell, especially late in games, have been a struggle this season. But the way Ballmer calculates it, the Clippers were able to get multiple hard-nosed defensive players who fit into the team's new persona with defensive coordinator Jeff Van Gundy. They also have several role players on attractive contracts if a trade materializes. The Clippers felt that if they had kept all three stars, the CBA would've put a stranglehold on their ability to add players who could do some of the necessary lifting around the trio, especially as Leonard and George aged. Being a second apron team could also cost the Clippers a first-round pick, something they need for any potential trade for a star in the future. "Once your pick becomes frozen, [and] if you're in the second apron for multiple years, you're really f---ed," Lawrence Frank, president of basketball operations, told ESPN. "You're in a situation where you never have cap space and you never have your midlevel exception and you're just strictly dealing with minimums and trades. Our goal is we want to be a sustainable contender." The Warriors and Clippers engaged in talks about a potential George opt-in for the final year of his contract worth $48.7 million and then a trade. The Clippers were willing to make a deal with their division rival, according to sources, but were looking for something of value to help restock their asset cupboard if they were going to take back an undesirable contract and be in the second apron. Swapping George for Andrew Wiggins, who has three years and $85 million left on a four-year, $109 million deal, plus other salaries to make the math work, would have been acceptable only if the Clippers received a young player such as Jonathan Kuminga or Brandin Podziemski and a pick or two. Draymond Green said on his "Draymond Green Show" podcast earlier this summer that George wanted to join the Warriors and that he was surprised the Clippers would not at least take something back instead of letting George walk for nothing. But league sources say Kuminga's name never seriously came up in talks of any significance and the Clippers felt they weren't getting enough positive assets to move forward in this new second apron world. "Nothing," a league source told ESPN, "is better than something." WITH 3.9 SECONDS left and the Clippers trailing the Portland Trail Blazers by one at home, Harden inbounded the ball looking to win the game. He saw Ivica Zubac trying to seal off Deandre Ayton under the basket. But Harden's inbound lob fell short and into Ayton's hands, giving Portland a 106-105 win, its first over the Clippers in three years. Through their first six games, the Clippers have looked like a team that will be very competitive defensively but will also have to squeeze out offense in low-scoring games. The Clippers had two impressive road wins over the Warriors and Denver Nuggets but dropped their first four games at Intuit Dome, including blowing leads of 21 to Phoenix and 13 to Oklahoma City. They finally got their first win in at home Monday, but only after storming back from 26 down to beat the San Antonio Spurs. But Ballmer remains convinced the franchise made the right move. "We were able to get three guys who are tough, hard-playing guys," Ballmer said. "And we still have the ability to consistently make ourselves better. So it was the right choice for us. "Paul obviously thought it was the right choice for him. I'll miss him. Very good human being, like him a lot, except when they play us. Wish him all the best, just not when they play us. And he was a good Clipper." Perhaps the Clippers will be able to lure a superstar free agent or two to Los Angeles again, especially with Ballmer's commitment to winning and the grandest arena and newest practice facility in the league in sunny Southern California. "We still believe this year we can be very competitive," Frank said. "Next year, similar to the playbook we had in 2017, we were two years out ... and we feel we have some unbelievable competitive advantages that now have been amplified that are going to help us get high-end talent in their prime. "You have to plan that you can't sign certain guys. So it's a quick pivot because we're right here. Here's the next scenario." Ballmer has been forced to pivot before. He enjoyed the Lob City era until Chris Paul was traded to Houston in summer 2017. By the following summer, Blake Griffin had been traded to Detroit and DeAndre Jordan left to sign with the Mavericks. After Paul's departure, the Clippers treaded water for two seasons before landing not one but two of the biggest stars in the NBA. "We had to kind of re-vector, change course," Ballmer said. "And boom, we wound up with Kawhi and Paul and put ourselves in position." This isn't a complete reboot for the Clippers, who still have two stars in Harden and Leonard. They are both signed for the next two seasons (with Leonard's deal extending to 2026-27). With Leonard out, Harden is averaging 21.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and 9.9 assists but shooting a career-worst 38.1% from the field. Powell is averaging a career-best 24.9 points. And Zubac is off to the best start of his career, posting averages of 17.4 points and 13 rebounds. Powell describes George's departure as "addition by subtraction," believing there are several capable players ready to step into bigger roles. Leonard, winner of titles with the Spurs and Toronto Raptors, says a championship roster can come in different forms. "You don't need that many stars to win," Leonard told ESPN. "It's about the amount of people you have around you. You need talent. If it's three superstars, you still need those role players or piece players within that team to make you win a championship, even if it's two or one [star] player. "We'll see as the season goes on and the pieces we need or if it's the right team to win. We feel like we got some players that could help us. But we'll see as it unfolds."
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