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Hello Clips Nation. It's that time of the week again to travel back in time, and see what it was like to be a Clippers fan before they were good! As always, let's start with the
TWiCH Record: 54-78
And now, let's take a look at 5 stories from the Clippers vault.
1988
Largest Margin of Defeat in Franchise History
This week, in 1988, the Clippers lost to the Seattle Super Sonics by 50 points, 154-104. That's right, 50 points!!! Suprisingly, it isn't the worst in NBA history, and it's not even close. Back in 1991, the Miami Heat lost to the Cleveland Caveliers, 148-80, to take the title of worst loss in NBA history.
The Clippers were lead by Danny Manning (18 points, 8 rebounds), and Benoit Benjamin (19 points, 3 blocks). Seattle, on the other hand, had 6 players in double figures, lead by Xavier McDaniel and Dale Ellis (27 points each), and Derrick McKey (25 points).
1990
Charles Smith Ties Franchise Record, Scores 52 Points
Charles Smith was my favorite Clipper. Even with Danny Manning, Ron Harper, Benoit Benjamin and Ken Norman, Smith was the one that I was drawn to. So, when he tied the franchise mark with 52 points scored in a game, against the Denver Nuggets, I was excited. Here are some highlights from the game:
Does anyone else miss those great Nuggets jerseys?
1994
Mark Jackson is Glad He is No Longer a Clipper
It was just 2 years prior, in 1992, as mentioned in the first ever TWiCH, that Mark Jackson was excited for his opportunity to be a leader for the Los Angeles Clippers. He looked forward to his role in leading the Clippers to where they had never been. And he did in fact do that, as he lead the Clippers to their first repeat playoff season since moving west.
Fast forward 2 years, and Mark Jackson, demanding to be let out of Clippers hell, was traded to the Indiana Pacers, for Pooh Richardson, Malik Sealy and Eric Piatkowski. And when the Pacers visited the Sports Arena for a game against his former team, he shared his thoughts.
"I'm not here to trash that team," Jackson said. "That's not my job.
"Everybody knows about management and the mistakes that they've made. Everybody knows how that is."
"I'm very blessed to be out of here," he said.
Welcome home, Mark?
"This ain't my home," Jackson said.
Glad to see your friends, guys you used to play with?
"They ain't my friends," Jackson said.
"I was playing with guys in the (1992-93) playoffs against the Houston Rockets and after Game 3, they're shipping their cars back home and packing their furniture.
"They had no commitment to winning. It was a sad event.
"Management is certainly a big part of why things are so bad, but I don't even look at that. We just never had 12 guys committed to winning."
Jackson said only three players on last season's Clipper team played to win, himself and two more he would not identify.
"Not even five players, that's sad," Jackson said.
So did trading Mark Jackson work out for the team........
1994
Clippers Set Record for Worst Start in Franchise History
I guess not. To start the 1994-95 NBA season, the Clippers lost their first 16 games, to start the season 0-16. If you were to count the final 4 games of the previous season, the team lost 20 straight. They would avoid losing a 17th straight game, by beating the Milwaukee Bucks, 96-94, in front of 6,433 fans at the Sports Arena.
2000
Charles Oakley Punches Jeff McInnis
Charles Oakley loves to get into fights with NBA players. Charles Barkley, Tyrone Hill, Marcus Fizer, and Jeff McInnis. The interesting thing about the Jeff McInnis altercation, is that it did not take place during an NBA Game.
McInnis and the Clippers had just finished up shooting practice, when Charles Oakley approached and punched him. Apparently, it was over a girl that both men knew. And, apparently, both men chose not to take the advise of Will Smith a.k.a. the Fresh Prince.