NBA trade rumours: what to expect from the Clippers before the deadline

With a week to go NBA trade deadlinethe Los Angeles Clippers they remain terrifyingly quiet amid what has so far been a barren season for blockbuster trades.

As Chinmay Vaidya pointed out for DraftKings Nation, the franchise isn’t expected to make such a big move. So far, even the rumors up to this point seem more representative of a “long list” seen sitting on someone’s desk in front office, rather than something concrete that Lawrence Frank and company have been locked in negotiations about.

But there’s a roster spot at stake, a backup center hole to fill, and one player in particular who might be looking for a better spot than he currently has on Tyronn Lue’s team.

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Players your team could move

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First on that list has to be John Wall, if only for the reason mentioned above. previous washington wizards star seemed like the type of personality that would be a perfect fit for the house wardrobe in The Crypt, but things haven’t quite worked out for either side up to this point.

Although Wall definitely still has enough in the tank to turn his fortunes around in Los Angeles, coach Lue’s desire to stay away from ultra-small lineups, coupled with the recent resurgence of Reggie Jackson, means he can return from injury to find his minutes into a prize.

Wall aside, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if one of the Clippers’ younger pieces, like Amir Coffey, Jason Preston and Brandon Boston Jr., found their way to a trade. The power forward jam also has fans fearing that Robert Covington’s future is still up in the air, not helped by his recent injury report designation for “personal reasons,” but all the noise that have come from the franchise all season long is that they expect him to still play a big role.

Players you would like your team to trade for

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The biggest problem the entire NBA is encountering right now is that the Rudy Gobert trade to The Minnesota Timberwolves it has completely inflated the entire market. With reports suggesting guys like Bojan Bogdanovic and Alex Caruso will command at least two first-round picks along with matching salaries, it’s hard to see how the Clippers can make a cheap deal with the small resource.

If prices drop sharply before the trade deadline, Jakob Poeltl has long been the center I’ve had my eye on to fill our reserve spot. He san antonio spurs The big man is possibly good enough to start a contending team right now, but, if he’s up for it, he’d be the perfect guy to help fill Ivica Zubac’s non-Ivica Zubac minutes in Los Angeles.

With that in mind, the return of Isaiah Hartenstein wouldn’t be such a bad thing, though Mitchell Robinson’s injury may have clinched the former Clipper at least one full season under his new employers.

Who could they actually acquire?

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As mentioned at the top of the article. and in previous ramblings of mine, the rumors so far have been boring. Just a collection of undersized guards and centers that don’t quite fit the summary of what the Clippers need on their roster, along with links to another former center in Serge Ibaka, who Ty Lue surely walked away from in his rotations for good reason. .

In terms of business goals, I could see the Naz Reid deal being realistic, as his low salary would mean they wouldn’t have to fight too hard to match him. Again, the question would be what kind of preliminary capital the front office can or is willing to include in any potential deal, which may be the hurdle for any deal.

what do you think they are going to do

I think there are still some twists and turns to go across the league, and the Clippers will likely end up with the backup center they wanted without him being the focal point of a trade, if not just pick someone off waivers once they’re done. those movements begin to happen.

Who that name would be is another question entirely, though names like Gorgui Dieng and Derrick Favors, who are the bouncing centers in free agency these days, do little for my no-over-great-undersize policy.

If the coaching staff were to decide that they can cope with just their small ball options in the reserves, while committing Moses Brown to the G-League for the season, then an athletic wing option would be preferable and there would certainly be a larger pool for them. fishing. for a good fit.

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