1985-86

The 1985-86 Clippers proved to be a streaky team. Los Angeles won its first five games, then lost eight straight. During the losing streak the Clippers were dealt a crushing blow when Derek Smith injured a knee and was lost for the season. The club's leading scorer the previous year, Smith had averaged 23.5 points through the season's first 11 games before becoming injured. Los Angeles had fallen to 13-28 by mid-January but then took 4 straight and 8 of the next 12 to climb back to near-respectability at 21-32. The Clippers finished with a 32-50 record and missed the playoffs despite sending Marques Johnson to the 1986 NBA All-Star Game. On April 15, only two days after the end of the regular season, owner Donald Sterling hired Hall of Famer and former Lakers star Elgin Baylor to run the team's basketball operations.