This is an interesting question. Taking a look at the Clippers current situation, they have CP3, JJ, DJ and Blake for another year. They have the 2nd highest payroll in the NBA and next year already have 82 mil accounted for BEFORE trying to presumably resign Crawford, Jeff Green, Mbah a Moute. So maybe you bring back 2 of those 3. Crawford is 36 but is still the best 6th man in the league.
The problem with the Clippers is the problem that a lot of GMs will probably have once the cap and that is the problem of trying to buy a team without having a core surrounding it.
The Clippers problem is not talent. Their talent was good enough to beat the Spurs in a 7 game series last year which is something that cannot be understated. That talent was also good enough to race out to an early lead in the semis against the Rockets. That team looked on the verge, but what happened? They completely ran out of gas.
This is the problem with trying to buy a team, you commit your money to the stars and forget about the depth. That team was depending on Austin Rivers to carry it far too often last year and he is not that type of a player.
I don't think the Blazers beating the Clippers in the first round would break that team. This will still be a transitional period for that team figuring out how to get CP3, Blake and DJ to work together offensively. Again, when it was working last year, they were good enough to beat the Spurs in 7. I just don't know if they'll have enough time this year to figure it out.
If they lose early, I would expect Doc to take a good, hard look at his bench and particularly at Jamal Crawford. Is it worth it to give that guy 5-8 million, or should we invest in a quality backup PG? That is the Cippers' problem, it is not talent, but it is that their depth is so dependent on Crawford scoring that it completely takes away from what the other rotation guys can do and focuses solely on Crawford.
I would keep the core together, sign Crawford for a lower price if you can and completely invest in a quality backup PG that can run the second team effectively and make everyone around him better.