(Image Source: Los Angeles Times)

BY KAVEH KAGHAZI

ANCHOR LAUREN GORES

“Lake Show” or “Lob City”?

For the first time in team history, the Clippers are being mentioned in the same breath as their Southland rivals. ESPN’s Ric Bucher asks who’s ahead in the battle of Los Angeles?

“Chris Paul going to the Clippers. The question is, can they challenge the Lakers? Not only for the L.A. throne, but in the Western Conference. A lot of talent there. It’s not just Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Chauncey Billups coming in, re-signing DeAndre Jordan, Caron Butler. Those are very exciting names. Can it work?”

Talent, yes. But do the Clippers have the chemistry? The addition of CP3 has All-Star forward Blake Griffin dubbing the new Clips “Lob City”. NBA.com’s Brent Barry says while the Lakers might be the better team now, the Clippers are Hollywood’s hottest ticket.

“The Lakers are going to win more because they have players returning, players familiar with one another. They will win more basketball games. But I would rather go see the Clippers play this year. I would rather go to see something start off and something that’s going to be exciting and something great, and I would rather pay half price.”

The Lakers haven’t exactly had an off-season to write home about. Gone are coach Phil Jackson and reigning sixth man of the year, Lamar Odom. An analyst for NBC Sports wonders whether the tide will start to turn in favor of L.A.’s other team.

“The Clippers gained a lot of popularity last year. They were kind of the sexy new girl at the bar, but suddenly there’s something real there. You know there’s questions about how long the Lakers can really be the Lakers. I mean Kobe’s showing some age, they weren’t able to make this deal for Chris Paul. There’s questions about how they’re going to bridge to the next generation and if they can get Dwight Howard to do it. You can see the Clippers next generation.”

Will Dwight Howard be the next star to make his way west? Bill Reiter of Fox Sports says the addition of Howard is the only way the Lakers will stop a seismic shift on L.A’s basketball landscape.

“Right now, the Clippers are for real, they are dangerous, and they have a much brighter future than the Lakers. Mark it down. Minus a Dwight Howard miracle, the Los Angeles Clippers are on the verge of being a better basketball team than the Los Angeles Lakers.”