Rowan Kavner
PLAYA VISTA, Calif. – Head coach Doc Rivers was surprised when he first came to the Clippers that there was any sort of rivalry with the Warriors.
But if it wasn’t the case at first, he believes it’s becoming one after Golden State won the title.
“You could see how both teams react, overreact in a lot of ways,” Rivers said. “You could see it was more than just normal. You can call it what you want, rivalry, testy, whatever, but it’s something.”
Rivers added that rivalries are good for the league, though he wasn’t sure if the one between the Clippers and the Warriors was the only “true one” going on right now. He said there had to be more, listing Cleveland and Chicago as a possibility, and the Lakers and Celtics have had one for quite some time.
“But right now this is an alive one for sure, and I guess that’s good,” Rivers said.
The writers at NBA.com weighed in on the “Hang Time Blog” on whether or not they thought the Clippers and Warriors have today’s best NBA rivalry. Here were parts of their responses prior to Wednesday night’s game, with many of them agreeing it’s the best rivalry in the game:
Steve Aschburner: “I can’t think of a better rivalry at the moment, based on the excellence of both teams, the Warriors’ status as the hunter and the Clippers’ offseason upgrades as hunters.
Fran Blinebury: “Until these two teams hook up in a truly contentious, hotly competitive playoff series, it’s like a lot of what passes for 21st century culture – loud talk. It’s certainly not Philly-Boston, L.A.-Boston, Chicago-New York, Detroit-Anybody of the old days. Of current day rivalries, I’d probably put it behind Cavs-Bulls.”
Scott Howard-Cooper: Yes. The strange thing, as someone who believes that rivalries are truly made in playoff matchups, is that the Warriors and Clippers had that necessary ingredient, but without the animosity…What really makes the rivalry better is another playoff meeting.”
Shaun Powell: Definitely the best rivalry because they see each other multiple times, are loaded with All-Stars and yes, a touch of danger and violence is always a possibility.
John Schuhmann: “We don’t have any real rivalries these days, but Clippers-Warriors is definitely the best imitation of one.”
Sekou Smith: “Sure it is. Bad blood always makes a great rivalry. And there is more bad blood bubbling between these two teams right now than anywhere else in the league.
Ian Thomsen: “It is the best, and maybe the only, rivalry.”
Lang Whitaker: “This is the best rivalry in the NBA today, because these are two of the best teams in the NBA, playing in the same division of the league’s best conference.”
To read the writers’ full responses, check out the full article here.
