SEPTEMBER 3: The Clippers have officially signed Zubac to an extension, per a team press release.
“We don’t take for granted that we can pencil in our starting center and defensive anchor every night, every year,” team president Lawrence Frank said. “Zu is a rock for our organization and will remain so.”
AUGUST 30: The Clippers and starting center Ivica Zubac have reached an agreement on a three-year, $58.6MM extension, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Zubac was entering his walk year and will make $11,743,210 in 2024/25. His new deal will run through the 2027/28 season. The big man is the 14th player to sign a veteran extension since the end of last season, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.
The contract represents the maximum three-year extension available under the Collective Bargaining Agreement for Zubac, who was eligible to receive up to 140% of this season’s estimated average salary, with 8% annual raises.
The breakdown of Zubac’s extension is as follows:
- 2025/26: $18,102,000
- 2026/27: $19,550,160
- 2027/28: $20,998,320
Zubac, who entered the league in 2016 with the Lakers, posted career highs of 11.7 points and 9.2 rebounds in 26.4 minutes per game last season. A traditional center who doesn’t venture out to the 3-point line, the 27-year-old shot 64.9% from the field and also averaged 1.4 assists and 1.2 blocks per contest.
Zubac is solidly entrenched as the Clippers’ starting center. Kawhi Leonard signed a three-year extension in January and the team brought back guard James Harden on a two-year deal but lost their other star forward, Paul George, to Philadelphia in free agency. The Clippers are replacing him in the lineup with Derrick Jones, who was signed to a three-year deal in free agency.
So wild the Lakers gave this guy away for nothing. He’d be the perfect banger next to AD who could float on the perimeter. Happy for Zu. I thought he was already making 20m/yr so he deserves that bump! Those are serious stats. If he got a 3PT shot or even a nice Haslem/Big Z jumper, he’d be a star.
They traded him away to get rid of Michael Beasley make it make sense
Cause they can’t get a better center.
He is the one & only reliable Clipper on the team!!!!
My point is there was no better center to get so they stayed with him by default.
It’s smart. This enables the Clippers to trade Zubac, and many contending teams are seeking big bodies in this new age of Jokic, Wemby, etc.
It would have sounded crazy 2 years ago, but Clippers ownership knows it has to start a rebuild. To get rid of Kahwi (who we know is certain to get injured and will destroy every season), you have to package Kahwi’s bad contract with real assets like Zubac’s contract.
Clips cant start a rebiuld, they dont own any of their picks till 2030))
Many thanks to PG-13 and Harden trades
Clips will have 1st round picks in 2025, 2027, and 2029, although they may be swaps with OKC and Philly.
There are win-now teams that will take an injury-prone Kahwi for first-round picks and youth… not as much as for a healthy Kahwi, but the Clips will have the worst roster in league in 2 years when Harden and Kahwi are gone, and with . They’re not making playoffs with Kahwi anyway, but the real pain starts in 2 more years unless they do something now.
Lakers let Zubac go. So they could sign Bron. Let Randle walk for same reason. Just facts.