The Clippers’ vision for next season doesn’t involve rebuilding. They say they have no interest in starting from scratch.
Instead, they hope to add significant pieces through free agency or trades to a roster led by seven-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard that will turn them into legitimate contenders.
That’s their intended plan. And given their flexibility and assets, they can be active on the free agent market (negotiations officially begin Tuesday at 3 p.m. PT) while searching for the right mix of veterans and youth to surround Leonard and point guard Darius Garland.
Sitting $39 million in salary cap space below the NBA’s luxury tax line, the Clippers have the ability to open more cap space by declining team options on veterans Bogdan Bogdanovic ($16 million), Brook Lopez ($8.6 million) and Nicolas Batum ($5.5 million).
They could also renounce the rights to some players or waive non-guaranteed salaries on their roster, which would give them plenty of options to chase players outside of their own locker room.
One option would be veteran swingman DeMar DeRozan.
The Sacramento Kings are reportedly looking to waive-and-stretch DeRozan, whose $25.7 million expiring contract is guaranteed for only $10 million and could be stretched over the next three seasons. Although 36, the former USC and Compton High standout has shown he can still contribute, averaging 18.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.0 steal per game while shooting 49.7% from the field last season.
Another high-profile free agent is Quentin Grimes of the Philadelphia 76ers, who was linked to the Clippers before they drafted Illinois guard Keaton Wagler with the No. 5 pick this week. Grimes is a versatile guard with skills on and off the ball, but he had a less-than-memorable season for the Sixers while averaging 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists and logging 30 minutes per game.
If the Lakers let forward Rui Hachimura walk, which isn’t a given, the Clippers would be one of a handful teams lining up to sign the 28-year-old sharpshooter.
Hachimura can stretch the floor with his perimeter shooting. He shot 44.3% from behind the arc last season and 51.4% overall while averaging 11.3 points and 3.3 rebounds, but he has never been known for his defense.
Peyton Watson, a young wing with the Denver Nuggets, could be the right fit for the Clippers down the road. The restricted free agent is young, athletic and coming off a solid season in which he averaged just shy of 14.6 points on 41.1% 3-point shooting in 30 minutes per game.
The Clippers need help inside and New York Knicks backup center Mitchell Robinson is reportedly unlikely to return to the newly crowned champions. The 7-foot Robinson averaged 5.7 points and 8.8 rebounds while playing behind Karl-Anthony Towns and would be a solid addition to a Clippers’ frontcourt that lacks a true starting center since the Ivica Zubac trade.
And then there is LeBron James, an unrestricted free agent for the ages.
His next move has been a hot topic since even before the end of last season. Where will he play if he doesn’t return to the Lakers? One of the teams mentioned was the Clippers, though it would seem to be a longshot given James’ widely known disdain for L.A.’s “other team.”
However, according to a prediction platform, the Clippers have the third-best chance (20%) to secure the future Hall-of-Famer, trailing only the Lakers and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins found that difficult to believe and quipped, “I got a better chance of losing 100 pounds by this Friday” than the Clippers acquiring James.