The Los Angeles Clippers are officially in crisis mode, and James Harden isn’t sugarcoating it.
Saturday’s 114-110 loss to the Dallas Mavericks wasn’t just another tough night-it marked the end of a brutal November slide that saw the Clippers drop 13 of their last 15 games. A team built on veteran experience and championship aspirations now finds itself staring up at the play-in line, much closer to the Western Conference basement than anyone expected.
“Situation here is difficult,” Harden said postgame, cutting straight to the point. “We’re not making shots offensively.
Defensively, the game plan mistakes we allow to happen too many times. That’s one of the reasons why we lose games.”
He’s not wrong. The Clippers actually controlled most of Saturday’s matchup, leading by eight late in the third quarter after Harden buried a three to make it 77-69.
But then came the unraveling. Dallas closed the quarter on a 14-6 run, tying the game heading into the fourth-and from there, it was the Klay Thompson show.
The veteran guard dropped 17 points in the final frame to complete the Mavericks’ comeback and hand the Clippers yet another gut-punch loss.
Harden finished with 29 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds-a stat line that looks solid on the surface. But dig a little deeper and the cracks start to show.
He shot just 5-of-17 from the field, including 2-of-6 from beyond the arc, and committed seven turnovers-more than any other player on the floor. It was the kind of high-usage, high-risk performance that’s become all too familiar during this rough stretch.
And while Harden struggled with efficiency, Dallas’ rookie sensation Cooper Flagg delivered a performance that felt like a coming-out party. The No. 1 overall pick dropped a career-high 35 points on 13-of-22 shooting, adding eight boards and two assists. He played with the kind of poise and confidence that belied his age-and completely torched a Clippers defense that’s been leaking points all month.
Speaking of that defense, it’s been among the league’s worst in November. Only the Wizards, Kings, and Jazz have allowed more points per 100 possessions than the Clippers’ 120.5. That’s not just bad-it’s historically bad for a franchise that’s seen its fair share of rough patches.
To put it in perspective, the Clippers’ .133 winning percentage this month ties for the second-worst November in franchise history. The only team that fared worse? The 1994-95 squad that went winless in November and finished the season with a 17-65 record-the worst in the league that year.
This current version of the Clippers wasn’t built to be a bottom-feeder. With Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Russell Westbrook, this is a roster designed for deep playoff runs, not early-season collapses. But right now, the chemistry isn’t clicking, the defense isn’t holding, and the offense is sputtering when it matters most.
Harden’s blunt assessment signals that the team knows the urgency of the moment. The season’s not lost-not yet-but if this slide continues, the Clippers could find themselves in a hole too deep to climb out of.