Los Angeles Clippers: Ranking new players from free agency
By Tom West
The Los Angeles Clippers made four solid additions to their bench in NBA free agency this summer, but which signing is the most important to their 2016-17 campaign?
Generally speaking, the Los Angeles Clippers are “rolling it back” next season. Austin Rivers and Jamal Crawford both received over $35 million in free agency, Wesley Johnson and Luc Mbah a Moute are coming back, too, and even Paul Pierce seems set to come back for another year as old man truth.
Of course, the Big 3 has stayed intact as well, meaning Blake Griffin is returning and DeAndre Jordan is even bringing a gold medal back from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
The band is staying together for what will be one of the most pivotal seasons in the history of the Los Angeles Clippers franchise. Both Griffin and Chris Paul can opt out to test free agency next year, and J.J. Redick‘s contract expiring in 2017 as well only adds to the possible changes that could drastically alter the team as we know it. Without a Western Conference Finals appearance, will they all have enough incentive to re-sign?
Well, at least there are four new faces coming to L.A. on veteran’s minimum contracts to help out however they can. There’s Brandon Bass, Raymond Felton and Alan Anderson, while Marreese Speights highlights the new bench in an exchange at backup center with Cole Aldrich, the gritty defensive backbone of the second unit.
Speights has the most important role to address as Aldrich is clearly the biggest loss of the summer, but just how do the new players rank against each other in terms of their ability, value, potential production, and importance to the Clippers?
Next: 4. The new backup power forward