The Los Angeles Clippers held their annual media day on Monday at the Intuit Dome, giving fans their first real look at the 2026-27 team and its adjusted front office.
Interim president of basketball operations Trent Redden spoke alongside head coach Tyronn Lue as the duo addressed the fanbase regarding LA’s recent turmoil.
“We’ve been listening to the thoughts, concerns and feeling the emotions of our fanbase,” Redden said. “They mean everything to us. Their pain through this time is real…we feel it, and we hear them. We hope to fulfill our promises to them to build their trust and move forward through this time.”
Lue echoed that it’s been a challenging time for the squad, but he remains hopeful about the environment and culture moving forward.
“It’s been difficult losing Steve [Ballmer] and [Lawrence Frank] for this time, but I give our players a lot of credit,” he said. “We’ve had guys in the gym for two months now, just working and trying to get better…the leadership is great, the morale is great — even in these tough situations.”
Adding to the list of offseason misfortunes for LA, Redden announced that forward Brandon Ingram will not be available to start the 2026-27 season, as the 29-year-old new acquisition is recovering from an offseason surgery that corrected a right heel injury and a partially torn Achilles tendon.
Redden noted that the recovery time for a partially torn Achilles is “about six months less” than that of a fully torn Achilles.
The 10-year veteran says he’s feeling good about his recovery, which has been a “week-by-week” affair. Ingram says he won’t be participating in training camp much.
“I’ve been in the facility for a little over a month now, just recovering, getting on the court a little bit,” he said. “I had been dealing with some pain throughout the year with the Raptors, especially coming down crunch time…near the end of the season we figured out what it was, and thought that surgery was the best thing to do.”
Bradley Beal, who appeared in only six games for the Clippers in 2025-26 before re-signing on a two-year deal this offseason, will also be absent for a portion of training camp. After undergoing surgery on his left hip, he is experiencing right knee inflammation.
He chose to return to LA despite reportedly having offers from other teams in more ideal positions to contend for a championship.
“My biggest thing is who gives me the best advantage of being available, being myself consistently,” Beal said. “I have a great relationship with the staff here, and I entrusted them with putting me in that position.”
Media day also offered LA’s roster a chance to voice their thoughts about the team’s dynamic and trajectory. Center Brook Lopez thinks that the team is being slept on.
“We’re still trying to win, still trying to be competitive,” he said. “We still have the ultimate goal of winning a championship. I think the mix of vets and youth is a huge positive for us. I think we got just the right mix of that, and it’s going to be a very exciting year.”
19-year-old guard Keaton Wagler, entering his rookie campaign after being selected fifth overall by LA, isn’t concerned with the expectations people may have for him.
“I think I’m just going to do my best to stay mentally focused,” Wagler said. “I’m not worried about all the outside noise that comes along with it. Obviously there’s pressure…[I’m] not worrying about good or bad games, but just continuing to get better each day, wanting to learn and hoping to win a lot of games.”
Guard Darius Garland, a fellow fifth overall pick from the 2019 NBA draft, had high praise for the way Wagler has gone about his business so far.
“I’m super excited about him, and he’s super excited, super eager to learn as well, which is pretty hard to come by,” Garland said. “That’s one thing I’ve really loved about him. He teaches me a lot, and I teach him a lot.”
The Clippers began training camp in Hawaii on Tuesday and will remain there ahead of their preseason opener against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday afternoon at Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. For the first time, their new-look squad will take the court, looking to forge an entirely new identity and leave behind an offseason of chaos.