Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2018 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2018/19 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Los Angeles Clippers.
Signings:
- Standard contracts:
- Avery Bradley: Two years, $24.96MM. Second year partially guaranteed ($2MM). Re-signed using Bird rights.
- Montrezl Harrell: Two years, $12MM. Re-signed using Bird rights.
- Luc Mbah a Moute: One year, $4.32MM. Signed using mid-level exception.
- Mike Scott: One year, $4.32MM. Signed using mid-level exception.
- Tyrone Wallace: Two years, $2.94MM. Partially guaranteed ($300K). Matched Pelicans’ offer sheet. Re-signed as restricted free agent using Non-Bird rights.
- Two-way contracts:
- Non-guaranteed camp contracts:
- Jamel Artis: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Desi Rodriguez: One year, minimum salary (waived).
Trades:
- Acquired the draft rights to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (No. 11 pick) from the Hornets in exchange for the draft rights to Miles Bridges (No. 12 pick), the Cavaliers’ 2020 second-round pick, and the Clippers’ 2021 second-round pick.
- Acquired Marcin Gortat from the Wizards in exchange for Austin Rivers.
- Acquired Johnathan Motley and the draft rights to Renaldas Seibutis from the Mavericks in exchange for the draft rights to Maarty Leunen and cash ($50K).
- Note: Motley is on a two-way contract.
- Acquired the draft rights to Vladimir Veremeenko from the Cavaliers in exchange for Sam Dekker, the draft rights to Renaldas Seibutis, and cash ($1,247,494).
- Acquired Alexis Ajinca from the Pelicans in exchange for Wesley Johnson.
- Note: Ajinca was subsequently waived.
Draft picks:
- 1-11: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — Signed to rookie contract.
- 1-13: Jerome Robinson — Signed to rookie contract.
Departing players:
- Sam Dekker
- Jawun Evans (waived)
- Wesley Johnson
- DeAndre Jordan
- Austin Rivers
- C.J. Williams (waived)
Other offseason news:
- Tobias Harris turned down extension offer worth a reported $80MM over four years.
- Hired Rex Kalamian as assistant coach; made additional changes to coaching staff.
- Hired SI writer Lee Jenkins to front office role.
Salary cap situation:
- Remained over the cap.
- Carrying approximately $119.6MM in salary.
- Hard-capped at $129.82MM.
- Full bi-annual exception ($3.38MM) still available.
Check out the Los Angeles Clippers’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
Armed with a pair of lottery picks and a desire to land a star player, the Clippers were the subject of a number of trade rumors this summer. Considering the Spurs wanted to acquire an impact scorer in any trade involving Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers were a realistic suitor, as they could have put together a package headlined by Tobias Harris. However, if they made a strong push for Leonard, that push ultimately fell short, with the Spurs sending the former Finals MVP to Toronto instead.
The Clippers explored ways to package their two late-lottery picks to move up in the draft, and multiple reports, both early and late in the pre-draft process, indicated that they had eyes for Luka Doncic. In the end, the franchise didn’t have enough ammunition to realistically move into the top three, and it was the Mavericks who traded up for Doncic.
While it’s possible that the Clippers were discouraged in the short term by their failed runs at impact players, the long-term outlook for the franchise remains promising. They may not have acquired any stars this summer, but by preserving cap room and other assets, the Clippers are well-positioned for 2019 to go after those top-tier targets, including at least one or two that they missed out on this year.