The team’s development outlet is receiving a slight rebrand ahead of the 2022-23 season.
In a press release earlier today, the Los Angeles Clippers announced that their G League affiliate team, previously known as the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, has been renamed to the Ontario Clippers.
The Ontario Clippers fought all the way to the Western Conference Finals last season before ultimately falling to the Rio Grande Vipers. They also saw a franchise-record amount of players make their way up to the NBA, with five players making the cut. They will continue to play home games in Ontario at the Toyota Arena, in which they have played ever since the team’s inception in 2017, all the way through the 2023-24 season.
This aligns with the construction timeline of the Los Angeles Clippers’ new arena, the Intuit Dome, which is set to open before the subsequent 2024-25 NBA season. It may be nothing more than an interesting coincidence, or it could pave the way for the G League team to utilize one of the five other full-size basketball courts, to be housed in the Intuit Dome’s team multipurpose arena, as well as allow the organization to consolidate facilities and talent.
Among other Clippers to have spent time with the Ontario Clippers are Amir Coffey, Terance Mann, Brandon Boston Jr., and Jay Scrubb. Clippers rookie Mousa Diabate will look to join that list this season, as he is expected to sign a two-way contract with the team.
The Clippers have found a lot of success and value with the G League team. The development of guys such as Mann, Coffey, etc. should be testament to that fact. This front office has not only found ways to attract free agents, but they’ve made development of in-house talent a priority as well. As they hope to remain a top-tier contender for the long haul, that development will be a tool the team uses to maximize talent and on-court production.
As such, they’ll look to continue that trend through the newly rebranded Ontario Clippers.