NBA History: The best era for each of the 30 franchises

LA Clippers: 2011-2017

The Lob City era of the LA Clippers wasn’t just the most prosperous stretch in the franchise’s otherwise laughable history. As the name suggests, their aerial theatrics produced an exciting brand of basketball that made them must-see television for the first time.

Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan were arguably the most athletic at their respective position, filling the nightly highlight reel with dunks that bent entire defenses to their superior physical gifts.

Once Chris Paul showed up in the summer of 2011, few could envision ways to slow down LA’s terrifying frontcourt duo now receiving passes from arguably the best floor general at the time.

The Clippers became a staple in the playoff picture. With six consecutive postseason appearances, they ushered in a new legion of fans that knew nothing of their previous struggles. As their in-arena rivals floundered, whatever excitement basketball brought to LA was a result of the Clippers’ success, a refreshing change of pace from over 20 years of the exact opposite.

The results didn’t live up to the championship expectations placed on the trio, but given the dark history of the franchise, it was tough to get too greedy. The Clippers became relevant for all the right reasons. For a team with as many losing seasons as they’d had in their NBA tenure, that was all that mattered.