Lakers Clipped

One of the easier wins of my NBA season just over, as the Clippers dominated the battle of Los Angeles, away at rivals Lakers winning by a whopping 48 points.

Except that this season, it's not much of a rivalry. The Clippers now lead the Pacific division with a record of 43-20 while the Lakers are last with a record of 21-41. Going into the game, Clippers had won five games in a row by an impressive 69 points, while the struggling Lakers fluked a win in Portland and beat the almost as bad Sacramento Kings (22-39) for their two wins in their last five. 

At half-time the Clippers led by 33 (73-40) and by the end of the third were up by 49 (109-60).  With 4:11 left in the third, it was possibly the earliest Lawler's Law in Clippers history. 142 was the most points scored in the NBA this season, and the 48 point loss was the Lakers worst ever in franchise history (beating the previous 46 on the road and 37 at home). 

The record of the Clippers never having made the play-offs without the Lakers also being there is in serious jeopardy. Technically this did happen in 1975-76, but the Clippers franchise at that time was based in Buffalo and called the Braves, so it hardly counts. It's like comparing Tottenham Hotspur with Arsenal while the latter were based in Woolwich! They (Clippers, not Arsenal) also had six seasons playing as the Clippers in San Diego before heading to Los Angeles.