After the primary spherical of the 2026 NBA Draft, LA Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank voluntarily took his staff out of the group of theoretical contenders.
That half was straightforward.
The Clippers had been coming off a 42-40 season and missed the playoffs. They haven’t gained a playoff collection in 5 years. And whereas Frank mentioned then that Kawhi Leonard could be key to the success of the franchise, the Clippers had been getting ready for the chance that their run with Leonard may quickly be over.
“Plan still is to win with Kawhi,” Frank said in June. “But the bigger plan is we understand we’re not a contender. We’re competitive. How are we gonna get back to contention?”
Somewhat greater than two months later, the Clippers’ reply to Frank’s query is starting to take form. As normal, the Clippers are coloring exterior the traces.
The Clippers agreed to commerce Leonard to the Toronto Raptors every week after Frank’s declaration, a deal that may web them Brandon Ingram, an All-Star at Leonard’s place, Gradey Dick, a lottery choose getting into the ultimate yr of his rookie contract, and draft capital. But the deal stays in limbo, with the Raptors pausing the transaction till the NBA decides on any punishment (or lack thereof) which will come from the yearlong investigation into allegations of salary-cap circumvention by the Clippers. With September right here, Ingram and Dick stay beneath contract with Toronto, and Leonard continues to be beneath contract with the Clippers.
Goodbyes have been left within the drafts — for now.
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The acquisition of 30-year-old small ahead Max Strus in a five-team commerce with the Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards gave Frank one other alternative to strengthen his message from June’s draft and inform anybody listening that the Clippers are attempting to win.
“We are going to be a highly competitive team this season, and Max will be a big part of it,” Frank mentioned within the assertion asserting the Strus commerce. “He fits anywhere, and we’re excited to bring him to LA.”
Strus offers them a 37 p.c 3-point shooter, gives some secondary ballhandling and can compete defensively. He’s additionally on an expiring contract price $16.6 million. His arrival got here simply because the Clippers misplaced reserve wing Jordan Miller, who suffered a torn rotator cuff in a exercise and is predicted to stay out at the least via the 2027 All-Star break.
Bradley Beal, alternatively, matches in a different way into the identical transition.
After present process season-ending surgical procedure final November to restore a fracture in his left hip after solely six video games, Beal isn’t being introduced again with the identical expectations. Instead of being a starter on a contender, he has to show he’s wholesome sufficient to earn a rotation spot. In the meantime, Beal has lengthy been a mentor to Darius Garland, as Garland as soon as performed on Beal’s AAU staff. Between Garland and fellow Missouri native Tyronn Lue, Beal has some essential relationships throughout the group and may, at minimal, be a sounding board for these two essential stakeholders.
Strus is larger on the pecking order than Beal, although. The Clippers are planning for Strus to be within the rotation whether or not he begins or not.
The Clippers made one other alternative that exposed how they view this transition: They let Bennedict Mathurin stroll. Given what Strus is predicted to offer on the ground, and what Beal is predicted to offer as a locker-room veteran, these transactions revealed what the Clippers prioritized on the roster.
Per week after the Clippers acquired Strus, Mathurin agreed to a two-year, $16.6 million take care of the New Orleans Pelicans that features a 2027 participant possibility. Rather than match or try to retain Mathurin, the Clippers relinquished the qualifying supply to facilitate the transaction.
The sport is about buckets, and Mathurin is a 24-year-old wing whose finest ability is attending to the free-throw line and scoring at a excessive quantity, both as a starter or a reserve. Frank praised Mathurin’s competitiveness and growth after the Clippers had been eradicated from the Play-In Tournament in April.
“For us, the challenge — and I think he did a good job of it — is to be a two-way player,” Frank mentioned then.
But the identical questions that adopted Mathurin via 4 seasons with the Indiana Pacers remained after his season with the Clippers. Could he develop into adequate as a scorer to make up for his inconsistencies as a passer, defender and shooter? Could he present sturdiness after taking part in in a career-low 54 video games? If defenses weren’t sending him to the free-throw line, what could be his counter?
Ultimately, the Clippers had been content material letting Mathurin transfer forward with endeavors. In a way, they selected a number of different gamers over him.
The largest issue that sealed Mathurin’s destiny was when the Clippers landed the No. 5 choose within the draft and chosen 19-year-old Keaton Wagler out of Illinois. The level guard offers them one thing they haven’t had a lot of through the Leonard period: a premium younger prospect with the chance to develop right into a foundational participant.
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The first hurdle for Wagler to clear in that journey is to steer the second unit. The hope is that Wagler, in some unspecified time in the future on his rookie contract, can approximate Mathurin’s means to strain the rim and get to the free-throw line at a excessive fee, whereas offering extra playmaking and taking pictures with out turning into a defensive legal responsibility. But Wagler has a deliberate play fashion that’s just like Mathurin’s within the half courtroom.
Perhaps Wagler and Mathurin might have labored collectively. But given LA’s precedence to let Wagler discover the studio house, having each gamers as reserves might have been duplicative and redundant.
With Garland, Wagler and (insert star small ahead right here), the Clippers needed to resolve whether or not investing in important cash and possessions in Mathurin nonetheless made sense. They determined it didn’t. Time will inform if they had been proper.
For now, right here’s what a Clippers depth chart might seem like. (Let’s embody Leonard and modify for a commerce with the Raptors or another staff when one formally goes via.)
LA Clippers early September depth
| Clippers early September | Point guard | Shooting guard | Small ahead | Power ahead | Center |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starters | Darius Garland | Kris Dunn | Kawhi Leonard* | Derrick Jones Jr. | Brook Lopez |
Rotation | Keaton Wagler | Kobe Sanders | Max Strus | Rui Hachimura | Isaiah Jackson |
Backups | Baba Miller | ||||
TBD | Cam Christie (Oct. 15 assure) | Johni Broome (76ers wage dump) | |||
Two-way | Jalen Pickett | Nick Martinelli | Jamarion Sharp | ||
Injured | Bradley Beal | Jordan Miller | Yanic Konan Niederhauser |
LA has only a few veteran commitments previous this season. Leonard’s contract expires in 2027 if it isn’t voided, which the Clippers, Raptors and the NBA Players Association don’t count on. Ingram has a 2027 participant possibility. Garland’s contract expires in 2028, although he’s extension-eligible. The Clippers have a 2027 staff possibility on Rui Hachimura. Kris Dunn, Derrick Jones Jr., Brook Lopez and Strus all have expiring offers. Beal has a 2027 participant possibility, but it surely’s partially assured. Lue’s contract goes via 2029, giving him about two years earlier than a call to increase him once more involves the forefront.
So, what are the Clippers constructing? They wish to do three issues directly:
- They wish to win video games; in any case, the Oklahoma City Thunder (once more!) can swap 2027 first-round picks with the Clippers.
- They wish to create significant alternatives for younger gamers equivalent to Wagler and Kobe Sanders, in addition to Yanic Konan Niederhäuser, as soon as he’s again from Lisfranc foot surgical procedure.
- They wish to keep flexibility to amass the subsequent blue-chip participant who might assist them return to rivalry.
Can they accomplish all three of these issues? The franchise has the longest lively streak of consecutive profitable seasons within the league at 15, so the usual there’s set. None of the rookie contract gamers have a transparent pathway to beginning, however a few of them will likely be relied on early, and all of them can moderately count on to get a possibility in some unspecified time in the future through the season. The Clippers at all times wind up buying and selling a rotation participant after the season has began; this season must be no totally different.
That contains a number of veterans who seemingly will likely be out there on the 2027 commerce deadline and several other prospects who, in Frank’s phrases, may have an opportunity to determine whether or not they must be on the Clippers’ “next contending roster.” In a approach, the Clippers have already made some selections on who could also be on that sort of staff (Wagler) and who won’t be (Mathurin).
“We’re very, very fortunate that, you know, sometimes you never get a run,” Frank mentioned through the draft. “We had a run, we came up short. I think you just have to be honest about yourselves when the run that we’ve had is now over. So now, it’s time to start a new run. And we’re doing this all the while of never, never trying to be bad. We’re always trying to get back to contention.”
The Clippers are attempting to have their cake and eat it, too. Prepare for a greater future whereas not bottoming out within the current. Reload reasonably than rebuild. We’ll see if not attempting to be dangerous can even be adequate within the West.