The Clippers were hoping that Kawhi Leonard’s return would spark a turnaround, but so far, that spark hasn’t caught fire. Since Leonard rejoined the lineup, Los Angeles has dropped four straight games, including a tough home loss to a struggling Dallas squad. That puts them at 5-15 on the season - a far cry from the expectations that surrounded this team heading into the year.
Head coach Tyronn Lue didn’t sugarcoat the situation. “I know we’ve had some tough circumstances in the last five years - six years - but I have been able to figure it out,” Lue said. “But this year, it’s been tough.”
And tough might be putting it lightly. Lue has already cycled through multiple lineup combinations over the first 20 games, trying to find something - anything - that clicks.
But with a roster that’s both aging and banged up, solutions have been hard to come by. The team’s lack of cohesion on both ends has fans calling for drastic changes, including some not-so-quiet calls for Lue’s job.
James Harden, who was brought in to help stabilize the offense, didn’t hold back in his assessment either. “The situation here is difficult,” he said.
“We’re not making shots offensively. Defensively, we just allow game-plan mistakes - we allow that to happen too many times, so that’s one of the reasons why we lose games.”
It’s a team that looks like it’s still searching for its identity, and with the season already slipping away, time isn’t exactly on their side.
Meanwhile, out in Phoenix, the Suns are flipping the script.
After a rocky 1-4 start that seemed to validate preseason projections of a down year, the Suns have quietly put together an 11-5 stretch to climb to 12-9 - good for the No. 7 seed in the West. That’s not just a bounce-back; it’s a statement.
Phoenix has had its own share of injury issues, but unlike the Clippers, they’ve managed to stay competitive regardless of who’s available. It’s been a gritty, team-first approach, and while it’s fair to wonder whether this pace is sustainable, there’s no denying the Suns have found a formula that works - at least for now.
Then there’s Houston, where things are clicking in a very different way.
The Rockets are 13-4 and boast the league’s second-best offense - and they’re doing it in a style that bucks the modern NBA trend. They’re attempting the fewest threes in the league and not exactly lighting it up from two-point range either. So how are they getting it done?
Simple: they’re dominating the glass. Houston is outrebounding opponents by more than 10 boards per game, and most of that damage is happening on the offensive end.
That means more second-chance opportunities, more possessions, and more chances to wear teams down. It’s not flashy, but it’s effective - and it’s giving them a real edge.
And finally, in San Antonio, even while sidelined, Victor Wembanyama is still making an impact.
Recovering from a calf strain, Wembanyama has embraced a different kind of leadership role - rallying the fans and his teammates from the sidelines. He’s been the driving force behind “The Jackals,” the team’s newly minted supporter section at home games. Not only did he come up with the idea, he personally selected the group’s captains over the summer.
Head coach Mitch Johnson praised the rookie’s commitment. “The saying goes, when people show you who they are, believe them,” Johnson said.
“He’s been committed and invested. He’s trusted.
He’s worked. He’s had his actions back up his words.
It’s awesome.”
Even off the court, Wembanyama is showing why the Spurs believe he’s the face of their future - not just for his talent, but for the culture he’s helping to build.
So while the Clippers are still searching for answers, the rest of the West is offering up its own storylines - from Phoenix’s unexpected surge to Houston’s throwback dominance, and Wembanyama’s leadership from the bench. The season’s still young, but the Western Conference is already giving us plenty to talk about.