Clippers season dilemma: Harden can t stand alone, and the team urgently needs to solve the problem of too few ball-holding points.

The Clippers started with 4 wins and 10 losses. This start surprised everyone. They introduced veterans such as Chris Paul, Bradley Beal, and Brook Lopez during the offseason, and traded Powell for Collins. The 27-year-old forward averaged 19 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season and shot 39.9% from three-point range. Coupled with Zubac's growth year after year, many people were optimistic about them in the summer.

Bill currently averages only 8.2 points per game on the field, but is out for the season due to a hip fracture.

Dello's movement speed on the court is obviously slow, and the team already has a center of the same type as Zubac.

Paul has been abandoned by Tyronn Lue because he is getting older and his on-field effect is not good.

Leonard has averaged 24.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game this season, after the truce against the Heat on November 4. Team president Frank said Leonard's injury was more complicated than expected, and doctors unanimously recommended that he take a long layoff.

Jones Jr. has sprained the medial collateral ligament of his right knee and needs to be evaluated in 6 weeks.

There is no starting point on the offensive end.

On the offensive end, Harden has only one starting point on the outside. In the Clippers' 3 games in the past four days, Harden averaged 43.2 minutes per game, scoring 35.3 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, and 1.3 blocks. But even with such data, it cannot lead the team to more victories. Facing the 76ers, he made 5 of 9 shots in the first quarter. He scored 17 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block in a single quarter. However, facing the 76ers' double-teaming in the last three quarters, Harden made 2 of 16 in the second half.

Leading the defense for the whole court, there is no other ball-holding point. After passing the midfield, they flank and force the ball.

Before halftime, there is a flanking situation. Harden passes the ball to the open space, but the latter misses the shot.

After the flanking attack, Harden passes to the bottom corner. The latter missed the pull-up

Harden didn't have the ball and no one could share the scoring for him

Harden wanted to hit Maxi with a back-up, and he was unscrupulous in flanking defense

Dunn held the ball through the half court to share Harden's physical strength. But it was also difficult for Harden to catch the ball

It can be seen that Harden was very tired in the second half. Every time he had the ball or not, there were more than two defenders watching over him. This also reflects the Clippers' current problem. Apart from Harden, there is no ball carrier. Tyronn Lue can only let him play for a long time, resulting in no physical strength at the last moment.

In addition, Paul's effect on the court is not good. This season, he averaged 2.3 points and 3.2 assists per game, and his three-point shooting percentage was 30%. He played 11 minutes against the 76ers and scored 3 points and 2 rebounds. The team lost by 6 points while on the court.

The Clippers must reverse the season, because the first-round pick in 2026 was in the hands of the Thunder, and they must make some transactions in the mid-term to equip Harden with another ball-handler to share the ball-holding pressure in order to break the situation.