Opening night: Wednesday, Oct. 21

Los Angeles went 42-40 last season, finished ninth in the Western Conference, and lost in the play-in round at Intuit Dome. Then the front office did what a 42-win team with no path forward eventually has to do.

James Harden went to Cleveland at the deadline. Ivica Zubac went to Indiana. Both returned young players and picks. Kawhi Leonard was traded to Toronto — except that deal has not been finalized, and it can’t be until the NBA finishes looking into something else entirely.

The investigation, stated plainly

The NBA has been investigating whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap to pay Leonard outside his contract, through sponsorship arrangements involving owner Steve Ballmer.

The organization has cooperated throughout and consistently denied the allegations. On Aug. 17, ESPN reported that the league had found no evidence that Ballmer funneled money to Leonard via sponsors. The investigation remains open as training camp approaches.

Until it closes, the Clippers’ roster is provisional. Leonard’s trade to Toronto is pending. Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick, listed among the team’s key additions, are contingent on it going through — if the deal is rescinded, both come off the books and Leonard’s expiring $50.3 million salary returns.

That’s an unusual way to enter a season.

What the roster looks like

Darius Garland is the returning centerpiece, acquired in the Harden trade. Bennedict Mathurin came from Indiana in the Zubac deal.

Keaton Wagler, the fifth overall pick out of Illinois, is the draft-night prize and the face of what comes next. Rui Hachimura arrived in free agency — from the Lakers, which is its own small piece of local intrigue.

Bradley Beal and Kobe Sanders were retained. Nicolas Batum, Bogdan Bogdanovic and John Collins were not.

Tyronn Lue also has three more rookies to sort through: Nick Martinelli, Baba Miller and Narcisse Ngoy.

The salary picture is tight — roughly $162.3 million committed against a $164.9 million cap, leaving about $2.6 million in space.

The complication nobody talks about

The Clippers do not control their own first-round picks through the end of the decade.

That’s the specific reason this isn’t a normal rebuild. A team that tears down usually gets paid in lottery odds; Los Angeles doesn’t. Losing games this season primarily benefits somebody else.

What the front office appears to be doing instead is preserving flexibility — reporting has suggested the Clippers are positioning to pursue a major free agent in 2027. That’s a different kind of plan, and it depends on cap room rather than draft position.

The schedule is full of reunions

The bookends are the best part: Wagler faces Sacramento’s Darius Acuff Jr., the seventh overall pick, on opening night Oct. 21 and again on the final day of the regular season April 11. Two top-seven rookies, first game and last.

The returns come in sequence:

• Nov. 2 — Kawhi Leonard with Toronto. He averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists across 65 games last season.
• Dec. 20 — Ivica Zubac with Indiana.
• March 11 — James Harden with Cleveland. The 11-time All-Star averaged 23.6 points across 70 games before the deadline deal.

Three former cornerstones, three separate nights, one season.

The Clippers are also bringing back early afternoon starts, with two 1:30 p.m. home tip-offs.

What success looks like

Not wins. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst made the obvious point recently: rebuilding teams aren’t built for regular-season results, and this is a rebuilding team.

The markers:
– Wagler’s development. The fifth pick in a strong class is the whole reason to watch.
– Garland and Mathurin. Both are young enough to be part of whatever comes next, and both need to prove it.
– Resolution on the investigation. The roster can’t be evaluated until the Leonard situation closes one way or the other.
– Cap flexibility preserved. If 2027 is the plan, nothing this season should compromise it.

Six years ago the Clippers were assembling a superteam. They enter this season with a rookie, a rebuilding roster, no control of their own draft picks, and a franchise player whose trade is waiting on a league investigation.

It’s the most unusual situation in the NBA, and it isn’t close.

LA Sports Wire covers Clippers news, schedules and game coverage all season. See the Clippers schedule for tip-off times and broadcast info.