The curtain of the new NBA season is about to begin, but the Los Angeles Clippers are trapped in the center of an unprecedented storm

The curtain of the new NBA season is about to open, but the Los Angeles Clippers are trapped in the center of an unprecedented storm. The return of defender Bogdanovic's injury was originally a shot of a strong shot for the team, but on the other hand, Leonard's yin and yang contract storm was like a bombshell, which made the Clippers' internal and external troubles shattered, and also made Harden's dream of winning shaky.

Let's talk about Bogdanovic first. During his time in the Hawks and the Clippers last season, he averaged 10.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, with a shooting percentage of 42.7%, and a three-point shooting percentage of 36.3%. In the international arena, he is the outside scoring of the Serbian men's basketball team. In the 2025 Men's Basketball European Championship, Bogdanovic was originally the core firepower point of the Serbian men's basketball team's outside, but unexpectedly suffered an injury. In the group stage against the Portuguese men's basketball team, Bogdanovic played for 15 minutes in the first half and performed well, scoring 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. However, he suffered a hamstring injury at halftime and was forced to withdraw from the game. The MRI results after the game showed a first-degree injury with a torn muscle on the posterior side of the hamstring.

This injury brought his European Championship trip to abruptly, with only two games in play. In these two games, Bogdanovic averaged 20.1 minutes per game, scoring 9 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal, shooting percentage as high as 77.8%, three-point shooting percentage was 50%, and free throw shooting percentage was 100%. Judging from the data, he is in good shape, but unfortunately he was unable to continue to show his skills in the European Championship due to injury. He can return healthy in the new season, which is also a good news for the Clippers. However, this could have injected strong firepower into the Clippers' back line and became an important support on the road to championship, but now the problem of Xiaoka makes all this full of variables.

According to Dallas Hoops Journal reporter Ashish Mathur, some members of the Clippers have lost confidence in Kat and hope to end their partnership with him. Since Xiaoka joined the Clippers in 2019, the team has not only failed to enter the NBA Finals, but his 42% attendance rate has also caused headaches for teammates and management. An insider even bluntly said that the "Little Card Era" is like a nightmare. Although he is full of talent when he is healthy, the frequent injuries and difficult teams have disappointed many members of the team.

And this Yin-Yang contract incident pushed Xiaoka and the Clippers to the edge of the cliff. Meiji revealed that when Xiaoka joined the Clippers, he proposed to the team many requirements such as taking Paul George, some team equity, private jet use rights, housing, and reliable off-site endorsement revenue, some of which exceeded the scope of the league's labor-management agreement. Now, if the league confirms that the "yin-yang contract" between the Clippers and the Small Card is true, the Small Card contract is likely to be abolished and cannot be re-signed with the Clippers, and the Clippers may also face huge fines and draft pick losses.

This was undoubtedly a heavy blow to Harden. When Harden left Philadelphia and joined the Clippers at a low salary, he was attracted by the team's championship strength and was eager to realize his dream of winning the championship here. In order for the team to have better salary space to sign, Harden made a huge sacrifice and accepted a relatively low salary. Last season, he spared no effort to build an offensive system for the Clippers, making Zubac a top 5 center in the league.

During the offseason, the Clippers made frequent moves in signings. The joining of Paul, Bill, Lopez, Clinton and other strong players made the team's strength look very luxurious on paper. Paul can continue Harden's organizational influence, Bill can supplement Powell's lack of offensive firepower on the outside after leaving, Collins has given the team a truly excellent offensive fourth position, and Daluo can also relieve Zubac's pressure well. But now, all these beautiful ideas have become confusing because of Xiaoka’s problem.

If Xiaoka leaves the team, the strength of the Clippers will be greatly reduced. Although Ka Ka only played 37 regular season games last season, he averaged 21.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game, shooting percentage was 49.8% and three-point shooting percentage was 41.1%. His influence on both offense and defense cannot be ignored. Without Xiaoka, the Clippers' forward strength will be weakened, and the team's tactical system will also face major adjustments. Even though Harden has many helpers around him, it is not easy to break through the fiercely competitive West.

Judging from the team lineup, most of the Clippers are currently veterans. Paul, 40, Batum, 37, and Lopez, their physical fitness and competitive state are difficult to support the high-intensity game throughout the season. Although Bill is strong, he is also troubled by injuries. If Xiao Ka really leaves, the team's cohesion and combat effectiveness will be greatly affected, and he is likely to fall into the quagmire of conflicts in the locker room and tactical chaos.

Harden is already quite old and has few left in his peak career. He can't wait for the Clippers to rebuild and run-in. Once the Clippers have no hope of competing for the championship this season, Harden's dream of winning may really be completely shattered, and his intestines may be regretful. He made sacrifices to win the championship many times in his career, but he always missed the championship. This storm of Xiaoka undoubtedly made his situation even more difficult.