• 8 months ago
The LA Clippers are expected to look for an upgrade at the point guard position on the trade market this offseason.
Transcript
00:00 The LA Clippers were embarrassed in the second round of the NBA playoffs, losing in seven games
00:04 to the Denver Nuggets for taking a 3-1 lead in Game 4. Plenty of weaknesses are made apparent
00:08 in this series, and according to Athletic's Shams Charania, the franchise won't be shy
00:12 about addressing them. The one such area for improvement, according to Charania,
00:16 is in the backcourt. Rival team, the Spectaclippers, will trade for a playmaking guard to take some
00:20 load off of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George this offseason, and while Charania doesn't know whether
00:24 this player could be a starter or a reserve, it makes the most sense for LA to bolster the
00:28 starting lineup. So who could be on the table? Who could be eyeing? The Clippers don't have much
00:32 trade capital in terms of future draft selections this offseason, but there are several guards in
00:36 the roster with very tradable contracts. Patrick Beverly will make roughly $14 million over the
00:42 next two seasons. Luke Williams is entering the final year of his deal, worth $8 million,
00:47 and Landry Shammott has shown plenty of potential and has a team-friendly contract.
00:50 Now, decimating the depth isn't the answer either, so it's unlikely that LA would move all three of
00:56 Beverly, Williams, and Shammott, at least not in the same deal. If Clippers do want to swing
01:00 through the fences, there are top-tier point guards out there. Drew Holliday is one of the
01:04 best two-way playmakers in the league, and the Pelicans can be motivated to move him this
01:07 offseason. That said, finding a way to match his salary could prove to be too difficult to manage.
01:12 And if LA is keen on keeping Beverly, a more offensive point guard could be acquired if
01:16 Clippers win the part with Williams and/or Shammott. Jalen Brunson could fill that role
01:20 off the bench for a low cost, and the Brooklyn Nets could also move Spencer Dinwiddie with a
01:24 healthy Kyrie Irving coming back next season. Now, ultimately LA may have to get crafty or
01:28 part ways with some fan favorites to make such a move happen, but as the franchise enters what
01:32 could be its final season with both Leonard and George on the roster, it can't afford to be passive
01:37 this offseason.

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