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The Los Angeles Clippers Have to be patient in free agency, draft

By Joseph Raya-Ward

LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 5: Chip West and Steve Ballmer talks prior to the game between the Dallas Mavericks and LA Clippers on February 5, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 5: Chip West and Steve Ballmer talks prior to the game between the Dallas Mavericks and LA Clippers on February 5, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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With the Los Angeles Clippers in the midst of a franchise overhaul, the team needs to show patience as they prepare for the future.

The Los Angeles Clippers, coming off an entertaining, but up-and-down season, are in the middle of a franchise overhaul. The new front office, headlined by Jerry West, has inspired optimism among fans, and led to some rather grandiose visions of the future. There has been an assumption that the team will be able to compete as early as next year, bringing in potential top-tier talent via trade or free agency.

While the team is primed to improve, due to two lottery picks in this years vaunted draft, they are still restricted by the roster decisions made during Doc Rivers’ tenure as President of Basketball Operations.

The Clippers have four players with player options that can be picked up for next season: Austin Rivers, Milos Teodosic, DeAndre Jordan, and Wesley Johnson. Those four options add up to a cap hold of about $50 million. One, Wesley Johnson, has already opted into the final year of his contract. If all four players opt-in, the Clippers will have $111 million on their cap sheet for next year, before adding in the cap holds for both lottery picks or new contracts for Ty Wallace, C.J. Williams, and Montrezl Harrell (not to mention Avery Bradley, who is also set to be a free agent).

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The cap for next year is set to be $101 million, with the tax line being set at $123 million. DeAndre Jordan is the most likely candidate to opt-out of his player option, as he may have the opportunity to secure a max contract from another team. Even without Jordan’s contract, the Clippers will have around $93 million tied up for next year. If all three of the remaining options were not picked up, the team would still only be able to free up about $27 million in room (after factoring in rookie contracts), which would not be enough to chase either LeBron James or Kevin Durant.

Currently, the team only has about $34 million guaranteed for the 2019-2020 season, which features a free agent class headlined by Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and Kahwi Leonard. Even though the Clippers finished with 42 wins on the season, they had a disappointing record of 16-33 against opponents that finished the season over .500, suggesting a solid team lacking premier, top-end talent.

While Clippers’ fans have been spoiled with the most successful run in franchise history, the cornerstones of that run are gone, and the team needs to focus its efforts on organically developing a path to sustained success. Clippers’ owner Steve Ballmer proved by green-lighting the Blake Griffin trade that he is interested in being a modern, championship-level franchise. Unless a home run trade presents itself, the team should learn from its mistakes by standing pat and shifting its focus to the 2019-2020 season.

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