It has been one of the wildest NBA offseasons in recent memory, and the Los Angeles Clippers are a big reason why.
They made a number of big moves, including sending Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets for Patrick Beverley and a number of other pieces, acquiring Danilo Gallinari in a three-team trade with the Denver Nuggets and Atlanta Hawks, and re-signing Blake Griffin to a monster extension.
While the actual deals may have been surprising, the fact that the Clippers made some major moves this summer was not. Many expected them to switch things up after another early playoff exit, and that list included Kevin Durant. The 2017 NBA Finals MVP was back on the "Bill Simmons Podcast" recently, and when the Clippers came up, KD noted what a lot of people before him have, saying "they needed some new energy." Via The Ringer:
Simmons: What does DeAndre say about the revamped Clippers? I know you're buddies.
Durant: They like it. He's excited. He's excited about it. Me and DeAndre; that's my best friend in the league. You could tell that at some point that everybody there needed some new life and energy. Whether it was somebody was leaving or somebody was bringing in another big player, they needed some new energy, and you could sense that now with the Clips. Especially with Doc just being the head coach now. I think that's going to be good for him. And this is all my opinion, so anybody getting offended by it, I'm sorry. It's just how I feel.
This isn't really anything groundbreaking from Durant, but it's still interesting that other players in the league were seeing the same things that fans and everyone in the media were seeing about the Clippers.
