1991-92

The trades and draft picks of the Elgin Baylor era began to bear fruit during the 1991-92 campaign. With Manning and Harper leading the charge, the team jumped out to a 5-2 start. On November 30 the Clippers beat the Charlotte Hornets, 130-112. That win was the first of eight straight, the longest winning streak for the franchise since 1979. After putting together a 14-10 record the team sputtered, and Head Coach Mike Schuler was replaced by Larry Brown, who left his post with the San Antonio Spurs. Los Angeles was 22-25 when Brown took over, and he whipped the team into contention by piloting it to a 23-12 record during the final three months of the season. That gave the Clippers a 45-37 mark. After 12 straight losing seasons the team had finished with a winning record. The Clippers also earned a playoff berth. The last time the franchise had seen postseason action had been in 1976, when the team was still the Buffalo Braves. Los Angeles faced the Jazz in the first round of the playoffs and lost the first two games in Utah. The Clippers then evened the series by winning both games at home, although Game 4 was played in Anaheim because of the rioting in Los Angeles following the Rodney King verdict. Back in Utah for Game 5, the Jazz ended the Clippers' short playoff run with a 98-89 victory. During the regular season Manning had developed into one of the league's best all-around forwards. Playing all 82 games for the first time in his career, he led the Clippers in scoring (19.3 ppg) and field-goal percentage (.542) while adding 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.65 steals, and 1.49 blocks per game. Harper also played his first full season and poured in 18.2 points per contest. Veteran point guard Doc Rivers, acquired from the Atlanta Hawks prior to the season, provided stability in the backcourt, sharing playmaking duties with Gary Grant and contributing 10.9 points and 3.9 assists per game.