1979–80 San Diego Clippers season

NBA professional basketball team season August 2023 March 2026 San Diego Clippers Los Angeles Clippers 1980 35 47 Pacific 5th 7th Gene Shue San Diego Sports Arena KFMB-TV KFMB Did not qualify SDC The 1979–80 San Diego Clippers season was the Clippers' 10th season in the NBA and their 2nd season in the city of San Diego.1979-80 San Diego Clippers Draft picks 1979 NBA draft Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club team 3 55 Tom Channel Guard Boston University 4 77 Lionel Garrett Forward Southern 5 99 Greg Joyner Forward Middle Tennessee State 6 119 Bob Bender Guard Duke 7 139 Jene Grey Forward LeMoyne 8 158 Renaldo Lawrence Guard Appalachian State 9 176 Mike Dodd Guard San Diego State 10 194 Greg Hunter Forward Loyola Marymount Roster San Diego Clippers 1979–80 #6BB3E6 white #FA4518 white 27 Marvin Barnes F 6 7 225 Providence 23 Joe Bryant F 6 7 215 Pennsylvania 24 Lloyd Free World B. Free G 6 2 185 Guilford 43 Greg Lee basketball G 6 5 195 UCLA yes 31 Swen Nater C 6 11 240 UCLA 22 Stan Pietkiewicz F 6 5 200 Auburn 7 Bingo Smith G 6 5 212 Tulsa 14 Brian Taylor basketball G 6 2 185 Princeton 32 Bill Walton C 6 11 235 UCLA 12 Nick Weatherspoon F 6 7 197 Illinois 21 Sidney Wicks F 6 9 225 UCLA 20 Freeman Williams G 6 4 185 Portland State Gene Shue Bob Weiss Roster notes This is Marvin Barnes' second tour of duty with the franchise. He previously played for the Buffalo Braves back in 1977–1978. Regular season Game log background:#6BB3E6; color:#FFFFFF; 1979-80 Regular Season Game Log (35–47) (Home: 24–17; Road: 11–30) y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; October (4–7) (Home: 4–4; Road: 0–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 1 || October 12 || Lakers || L 102–103 || Lloyd Free (46) || Nick Weatherspoon (9)|| Lloyd Free (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 8,503 || 0–1 || |- | 2 || October 14 || SuperSonics || W 98–93 || Lloyd Free (35) || Swen Nater (16)|| Tied (4) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,242 || 1–1 || |- | 3 || October 16 || @ Trail Blazers || L 94–98|| Lloyd Free (24) || Swen Nater (16)|| Lloyd Free (4) || Memorial Coliseum 12,666 || 1–2 || |- | 4 || October 18 || Bulls || W 111–107 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (14) || Brian Taylor (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,844 || 2–2 || |- | 5 || October 19 || @ SuperSonics || L 98–106 || Lloyd Free (41) || Swen Nater (18)|| Tied (4) || Kingdome 16,614 || 2–3 || |- | 6 || October 22 || @ Jazz || L 109–110 || Lloyd Free (33) || Swen Nater (13)|| World B. Free (4) || Salt Palace 6,122 || 2–4 || |- | 7 || October 23 || Nuggets || W 132–127 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (12)|| Tied (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,660 || 3–4 || |- | 8 || October 25 || Bucks || L 115–118 || Lloyd Free (30) || Swen Nater (15)|| Tied (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,617 || 3–5 || |- | 9 || October 27 || SuperSonics || W 110–105 || Lloyd Free (33) || Nick Weatherspoon (9)|| Lloyd Free (9) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,224 || 4–5 || |- | 10 || October 28 || Kings || L 101–106 || Joe Bryant (23) || Swen Nater (13)|| Lloyd Free (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,081 || 4–6 || |- | 11 || October 31|| Spurs || L 123–130 || Lloyd Free (35) || Swen Nater (21)|| Lloyd Free (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,044 || 4–7 || |- y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; November (6–8) (Home: 5–3; Road: 2–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 12 || November 2 || Trail Blazers || L 102–123 || Freeman Williams (29) || Swen Nater (12)|| Brian Taylor (4) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,319 || 4–8 || |- | 13 || November 3 || Jazz || W 126–109 || Lloyd Free (28) || Swen Nater (19)|| Swen Nater (10) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,428 || 5–8 || |- | 14 || November 6 || @ Lakers || L 112–127 || Lloyd Free (29) || Swen Nater (15)|| Joe Bryant (7) || The Forum 12,817 || 5–9 || |- | 15 || November 7 || @ Suns || W 114–102 || Lloyd Free (45) || Swen Nater (13)|| Lloyd Free (5) || Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 11,097 || 6–9 || |- | 16 || November 9 || @ Bulls || L 92–107 || Freeman Williams (26) || Swen Nater (16)|| Lloyd Free (7) || Chicago Stadium 8,014 || 6–10 || |- | 17 || November 10 || @ Bucks || L 104–133 || Freeman Williams (33) || Swen Nater (15)|| Tied (6) || MECCA Arena 10,938 || 6–11 || |- | 18 || November 13 || Lakers || L 91–137 || Swen Nater (15) || Swen Nater (10)|| Brian Taylor (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 9,068 || 6–12 || |- | 19 || November 16 || Pacers || W 105–97 || Freeman Williams (35) || Swen Nater (15)|| Brian Taylor (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,221 || 7–12 || |- | 20 || November 18 || Bucks || W 112–96|| Brian Taylor (23) || Swen Nater (21)|| Brian Taylor (9) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,342 || 8–12 || |- | 21 || November 20 || Suns || W 117–110 || Brian Taylor (28) || Swen Nater (15)|| Lloyd Free (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,992 || 9–12 || |- | 22 || November 21 || @ Nuggets || L 84–105 || Lloyd Free (27) || Tied (11)|| Joe Bryant (5) || McNichols Sports Arena 5,922 || 9–13 || |- | 23 || November 23 || Kings || L 91–107 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (14)|| Lloyd Free (3) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,940 || 9–14 || |- | 24 || November 27 || Bulls || W 128–103 || Lloyd Free (23) || Swen Nater (16)|| Tied (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 8,075 || 10–14 || |- | 25 || November 28 || @ Warriors || W 114–108 || Lloyd Free (28) || Swen Nater (17)|| Brian Taylor (9) || Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena 10,726 || 11–14 || |- | 26 || November 30 || @ 76ers || L 101–104 || Lloyd Free (29) || Swen Nater (16)|| Brian Taylor (7) || The Spectrum 10,726 || 11–15 || |- y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; December (9–6) (Home: 5–2; Road: 4–4) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 27 || December 1 || @ Hawks || L 96–106 || Lloyd Free (35) || Joe Bryant (12)|| Joe Bryant (5) || Omni Coliseum 9,373 || 11–16 || |- | 28 || December 4 || @ Cavaliers || L 112–115 || Lloyd Free (28) || Swen Nater (15)|| Freeman Williams (5) || Richfield Coliseum 7,155 || 11–17 || |- | 29 || December 6 || Warriors || W 105–103 || Lloyd Free (30) || Swen Nater (11)|| Brian Taylor (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 8,664 || 12–17 || |- | 30 || December 7 || @ Lakers || W 116–108 || Lloyd Free (42) || Swen Nater (27)|| Tied (4) || The Forum 12,222 || 13–17 || |- | 31 || December 9 || @ Trail Blazers || W 98–96 || Lloyd Free (25) || Swen Nater (16)|| Lloyd Free (6) || Memorial Coliseum 12,666 || 14–17 || |- | 32 || December 12 || Rockets || L 107–118 || Lloyd Free (29) || Swen Nater (17)|| Tied (3) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,756 || 14–18 || |- | 33 || December 14 || Nuggets || W 112–108 || Lloyd Free (37) || Swen Nater (32)|| Lloyd Free (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,684 || 15–18 || |- | 34 || December 16 || Pistons || W 113–124 || Lloyd Free (49) || Swen Nater (15) || Tied (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,571 || 16–18 || |- | 35 || December 18 || @ Kings || L 96–110 || Lloyd Free (25) || Swen Nater (8) || Tied (3) || Municipal Auditorium 6,935 || 16–19 || |- | 36 || December 20 || Knicks || W 128–118 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (17) || Sidney Wicks (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,843 || 17–19 || |- | 37 || December 21 || @ Jazz || W 110–98 || Freeman Williams (28) || Joe Bryant (9) || Sidney Wicks (7) || Salt Palace 5,141 || 18–19 || |- | 38 || December 23 || Jazz || W 124–118 OT || Lloyd Free (41) || Swen Nater (22) || Lloyd Free (8) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,548 || 19–19 || |- | 39 || December 26 || @ SuperSonics || L 104–124 || Brian Taylor (28) || Swen Nater (10) || Sidney Wicks (10) || Kingdome 24,958 || 19–20 || |- | 40 || December 27 || Celtics || L 97–118 || Lloyd Free (28) || Swen Nater (15) || Freeman Williams (3) || San Diego Sports Arena 13,841 || 19–21 || |- | 41 || December 29 || @ Bullets || W 93–90 || Freeman Williams (24) || Swen Nater (17) || Tied (3) || Capital Centre 15,989 || 20–21 || |- y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; January (8–8) (Home: 5–0; Road: 3–8) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 42 || January 2 || @ Nets || W 103–97 || Lloyd Free (31) || Swen Nater (23) || Freeman Williams (7) || Rutgers Athletic Center 5,204 || 21–21 || |- | 43 || January 3 || @ Knicks || L 114–107 || Lloyd Free (30) || Freeman Williams (8) || Tied (4) || Madison Square Garden 11,375 || 21–22 || |- | 44 || January 4 || @ Bulls || L 118–121 || Lloyd Free (38) || Swen Nater (11) || Brian Taylor (9) || Chicago Stadium 10,538 || 21–23 || |- | 45 || January 6 || SuperSonics || W 105–103 || Lloyd Free (34) || Swen Nater (17) || Tied (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,622 || 22–23 || |- | 46 || January 8 || @ Kings || W 124–116 || Lloyd Free (33) || Swen Nater (26) || Tied (4) || Municipal Auditorium 7,387 || 23–23 || |- | 47 || January 9 || @ Bucks || W 111–107 || Lloyd Free (33) || Swen Nater (14) || Lloyd Free (7) || MECCA Arena 10,938 || 24–23 || |- | 48 || January 11 || Warriors || W 116–112 || Lloyd Free (39) || Swen Nater (16) || Brian Taylor (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 8,165 || 25–23 || |- | 49 || January 12 || Jazz || W 119–102 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (28) || Lloyd Free (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 9,287 || 26–23 || |- | 50 || January 16 || Hawks || W 111–108 || Lloyd Free (33) || Swen Nater (16) || Tied (4) || San Diego Sports Arena 11,266 || 27–23 || |- | 51 || January 18 || @ Warriors || L 91–92 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (17) || Brian Taylor (7) || Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena 7,741 || 27–24 || |- | 52 || January 19 || @ Suns || L 123–137 || Freeman Williams (51) || Nick Weatherspoon (8) || Stan Pietkiewicz (8) || Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 12,660 || 27–25 || |- | 53 || January 22 || @ Spurs || L 109–129 || Freeman Williams (21) || Sidney Wicks (11) || Sidney Wicks (8) || HemisFair Arena 10,049 || 27–26 || |- | 54 || January 23 || @ Rockets || L 110–111 2OT || Lloyd Free (33) || Swen Nater (23) || Lloyd Free (9) || The Summit 7,159 || 27–27 || |- | 55 || January 25 || @ Pacers || L 117–139 || Lloyd Free (27) || Swen Nater (16) || Lloyd Free (7) || Market Square Arena 8,794 || 27–28 || |- | 56 || January 27 || @ Celtics || L 108–131 || Lloyd Free (35) || Swen Nater (11) || Tied (4) || Boston Garden 15,320 || 27–29 || |- | 57 || January 29 || Suns || W 133–121 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (21) || Swen Nater (8) || San Diego Sports Arena 11,428 || 28–29 || |- y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; February (3–8) (Home: 2–3; Road: 1–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 58 || February 6 || @ Warriors || L 117–92 || Freeman Williams (29) || Swen Nater (11) || Stan Pietkiewicz (5) || Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena 8,380 || 28–30 || |- | 59 || February 8 || Trail Blazers || W 118–104 || Freeman Williams (29) || Joe Bryant (12) || Tied (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 12,715 || 29–30 || |- | 60 || February 9 || @ Nuggets || L 104–123 || Freeman Williams (33) || Swen Nater (18) || Stan Pietkiewicz (7) || McNichols Sports Arena 14,662 || 29–31 || |- | 61 || February 13 || Bullets || L 103–108 || Lloyd Free (28) || Swen Nater (15) || Brian Taylor (8) || San Diego Sports Arena 9,472 || 29–32 || |- | 62 || February 17 || Kings || L 107–108 || Lloyd Free (24) || Swen Nater (10) || Brian Taylor (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 9,114 || 29–33 || |- | 63 || February 19 || Nets || L 113–123 || Freeman Williams (24) || Swen Nater (10) || Brian Taylor (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 11,709 || 29–34 || |- | 64 || February 21 || 76ers || W 104–99 || Lloyd Free (24) || Swen Nater (16) || Tied (3) || San Diego Sports Arena 13,472 || 30–34 || |- | 65 || February 24 || @ Bulls || L 102–110 || Lloyd Free (35) || Swen Nater (10) || Bill Walton (6) || Chicago Stadium 7,257 || 30–35 || |- | 66 || February 26 || @ Bucks || L 88–122 || Lloyd Free (21) || Swen Nater (15) || Lloyd Free (4) || MECCA Arena 10,938 || 30–36 || |- | 67 || February 27 || @ Pistons || W 129–113 || Lloyd Free (42) || Bill Walton (13) || Tied (7) || Pontiac Silverdome 5,229 || 31–36 || |- | 68 || February 29 || @ Kings || L 93–98 || Lloyd Free (34) || Tied (13) || Lloyd Free (4) || Checkerdome 10,561 || 31–37 || |- y background:#FA4518;color:#FFFFFF; March (4–10) (Home: 3–5; Road: 1–5) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record Report |- | 69 || March 2 || Bucks || L 98–101 || Lloyd Free (22) || Swen Nater (14) || Swen Nater (3) || San Diego Sports Arena 13,841 || 31–38 || |- | 70 || March 4 || Cavaliers || W 116–105 || Lloyd Free (24) || Swen Nater (19) || Tied (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 9,024 || 32–38 || |- | 71 || March 8 || @ Jazz || W 113–98 || Lloyd Free (38) || Bill Walton (15) || Tied (4) || Salt Palace 9,462 || 33–38 || |- | 72 || March 9 || Warriors || L 107–125 || Lloyd Free (26) || Swen Nater (13) || Swen Nater (8) || San Diego Sports Arena 7,560 || 33–39 || |- | 73 || March 11 || Lakers || L 106–123 || Lloyd Free (32) || Swen Nater (16) || Tied (4) || San Diego Sports Arena 13,841 || 33–40 || |- | 74 || March 13 || Nuggets || W 116–102 || Lloyd Free (26) || Swen Nater (22) || Brian Taylor (8) || San Diego Sports Arena 6,798 || 34–40 || |- | 75 || March 15 || Suns || W 120–109 || Lloyd Free (44) || Swen Nater (16) || Tied (6) || San Diego Sports Arena 10,635 || 35–40 || |- | 76 || March 16 || @ Nuggets || L 107–127 || Lloyd Free (29) || Swen Nater (18) || Lloyd Free (4) || McNichols Sports Arena 12,497 || 35–41 || |- | 77 || March 18 || Bulls || L 101–115 || Swen Nater (24) || Swen Nater (10) || Brian Taylor (7) || San Diego Sports Arena 8,731 || 35–42 || |- | 78 || March 21 || @ SuperSonics || L 104–107|| Freeman Williams (21) || Swen Nater (9) || Tied (7) || Kingdome 22,695 || 35–43 || |- | 79 || March 23 || @ Trail Blazers || L 91–98 || Freeman Williams (25) || Swen Nater (13) || Swen Nater (9) || Memorial Coliseum 12,666 || 35–44 || |- | 80 || March 27 || Trail Blazers || L 93–96 || Swen Nater (24) || Swen Nater (19) || Swen Nater (5) || San Diego Sports Arena 10,863 || 35–45 || |- | 81 || March 28 || @ Lakers || L 88–126 || Freeman Williams (20) || Swen Nater (23) || Sidney Wicks (10) || The Forum 17,505 || 35–46 || |- | 82 || March 30 || @ Suns || L 104–122|| Freeman Williams (24) || Swen Nater (19) || Tied (7) || Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 10,807 || 35–47 || |- Season standings SDC SDC Notes z, y – division champions x – clinched playoff spot Player statistics Player GP MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPGPPG Free, Lloyd Lloyd Free 68 38.0 .474 .360 .753 3.5 4.2 1.2 0.5 30.2 Nater, Swen Swen Nater 81 35.3 .554† .000 .718 15.0 2.9 0.6 0.5 13.4 Taylor, Brian Brian Taylor 78 35.3 .467 .377 .802 2.4 4.3 1.9 0.3 13.5 Wicks, Sidney Sidney Wicks 71 30.2 .423 .000 .546 5.8 3.0 1.1 0.7 7.1 Bryant, Joe Joe Bryant 81 28.7 .431 .147 .742 6.4 1.8 1.3 0.5 9.3 Smith, Bingo Bingo Smith 70 28.4 .430 .289 .869 3.5 1.3 0.8 0.2 11.7 Williams, Freeman Freeman Williams 82 25.8 .480 .328 .815 2.3 2.0 0.9 0.1 18.6 Walton, Bill Bill Walton 14 24.1 .503 .000 .593 9.0 2.4 0.6 2.7 13.9 Weatherspoon, Nick Nick Weatherspoon 57 19.7 .434 NA .692 3.6 0.9 0.6 0.3 6.9 Olive, John John Olive 1 15.0 .000 NA .000 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Barnes, Marvin Marvin Barnes 20 14.4 .400 NA .500 3.9 0.9 0.3 0.6 3.2 Carrington, Bob Bob Carrington 10 13.4 .405 .000 .750 1.3 0.3 0.4 0.1 3.6 Whitehead, Jerome Jerome Whitehead 18 12.5 .600† NA .278 3.9 0.3 0.1 0.3 3.3 Pietkiewicz, Stan Stan Pietkiewicz 50 11.5 .508 .250 .804 0.9 1.9 0.5 0.1 4.6 Malovic, Steve Steve Malovic 28 9.9 .548 NA .778 2.1 0.4 0.2 0.0 1.9 Awards, records and milestones Awards Week/Month All-Star Lloyd Free selected as a reserve guard for the Western Conference All-Stars. Free would be the first and only San Diego Clipper All-Star. Season Records Swen Nater sets a franchise record of total rebounds in a single season with 1,216. This record will not be broken until 35 years later by DeAndre Jordan with 1,226 rebounds. Milestones Transactions The Clippers were involved in the following transactions during the 1979–80 season. Trades May 13, 1979 To San Diego Clippers The right to sign Bill Walton as a veteran free agent To Portland Trail Blazers Kermit Washington, Kevin Kunnert, & a 1980 first round draft pick as compensation. September 21, 1979 To San Diego Clippers A 1980 first round draft pick To Cleveland Cavaliers Randy Smith October 6, 1979 To San Diego Clippers Joe Bryant To Philadelphia 76ers 1986 first round draft pick October 27, 1979 To San Diego Clippers Bingo Smith To Cleveland Cavaliers 1980 third round draft pick November 21, 1979 To San Diego Clippers Steve Malovic To Washington Bullets 1982 second round draft pick Free agents 52% Additions Player Signed Former team Bob Carrington June 15 Tucson Gunners (WBA) Bill Walton September 18 Portland Trail Blazers Greg Lee September 25 TuS Bayer 04 Leverkusen (BBL) Marvin Barnes September 30waived, October 10 signed as free agent, January 30 Boston Celtics Subtractions Player Left New team Bob Bigelow free agency, July 1 Retired Bob Carrington waived, November 19 Retired John Olive waived, November 26 Alberta Dusters (CBA) Jerome Whitehead waived, December 4 Utah Jazz Steve Malovic waived, February 19 Detroit Pistons References Category:Los Angeles Clippers seasons San