Which types of players should the LA Clippers target in the NBA Draft?

The NBA Draft is rapidly approaching, and the LA Clippers could find some gems in the back end of the second round. But what should they be looking for?

The LA Clippers just finished up one of their most impressive seasons to date, and a big reason why they were so successful with so little was because of the efficiency of their bench. The team finished the regular season with the league’s most bench points per game, and nearly five points better than the second-highest unit which belonged to the Brooklyn Nets.

Unfortunately for the Clippers, they won’t be able to return all the players that made the unit so special this season. As nice as it would be to bring them all back for another go, guys like JaMychal Green and Garrett Temple may come with too large of a price tag, especially if LA is keen on pursuing multiple max-level players like Kawhi Leonard and Kevin Durant.

With two second-round draft picks, the Clippers may be able to find some instant contributors at No. 48 and 56 and remedy that issue. But which types of players should they pursue?

No point guards, please

Unless Patrick Beverley leaves this summer, there’s no immediate reason to go after a point guard in the draft. There are bigger needs elsewhere, and if the LA Clippers feel they are in desperate need of one, there will likely be better options available in free agency.

Outside of Beverley, the Clippers have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Tyrone Wallace available at point. It’s worth noting though that Lou Williams is usually the guy that runs the offense within the second unit, which shoves Wallace down to the third and allows LA to run another two-guard next to him. That trend could continue next season as Jerome Robinson looks to get more minutes, but he’s also a player of interest here for a different reason.

One of the things Robinson was keen on proving in the NBA was how well he handles the ball — and if he does that well enough, he could be LA’s primary backup point guard.. While he probably won’t be the team’s first choice to fill the position, he could be an ideal fit if the Clippers spend most of their money on max-level players once free agency begins.

If the Clippers do end up rolling the dice and drafting one, expect them to be long, a versatile defender and an above-average shooter. Jalen Lecque could be a possibility here.

Floor-spacing bigs

The LA Clippers found out just how effective a floor-spacing big can be when they acquired JaMychal Green from the Memphis Grizzlies at the trade deadline. For a second unit that lacked a lot of deep-ball shooters, Green filled a huge need and helped open things up for guys like Montrezl Harrell to thrive in the paint.

But with his performance in the playoffs, Green may have priced himself out of LA’s range. And with that, the Clippers will likely need to find a player that can replicate some of what he was able to do.

The focus here will be on length, mobility and shooting, three things that help Green play as well as he does. It’ll be difficult to find a player late in the second round that possesses all three of those traits, so the Clippers may need to compromise on one of them and work on developing it in the future.

Naz Reid, for example, has the length and shooting (6’10”, 33.3 percent from range), but lacks the speed to keep up with opponents on the perimeter or get the separation he needs to shoot.

Ignas Brazdeikis, who we wrote about earlier last month, is quick and can score with ease (39.2 percent on 143 attempts), but stands just 6’7″ and doesn’t have a large wingspan.

Arizona State’s Zylan Cheatham has decent size at 6’8″, plus he’s quick and an extremely versatile defender, but his high-percentage, low-volume shooting (44 percent on 25 attempts) doesn’t inspire any hopes of him becoming the next great 3-and-D big.

Jalen McDaniels is probably the best-case scenario here, who just finished up his second season at San Diego State. He’s quick enough, long enough (6’10”, 7’0″ wingspan) and made 32 percent of the 75 threes he attempted last year, but he may not slide into the Clippers’ range at No. 48. He’s also a great defender, making him valuable on more than one end of the floor.

If the Clippers go this route, it may come down to personal preference more than anything else.

Two-way wings

Like we said earlier, these LA Clippers seem to like long, versatile defenders that have a knack for knocking down the occasional three-ball. Those types of players tend to be wings more often than not, which is especially convenient since that’s their biggest position of need. And while the Clippers are expected to be in play to land Kawhi Leonard this summer, but that move won’t necessarily help out the bench.

LA could lose most of their current wings this summer, and could realistically be left with Sindarius Thornwell as their only backup at the position. In that case, free agency will likely be their first option when looking for players to fill out the roster — but there could still be some solid options available in the draft as well.

One of them is Cody Martin, who has the ability to become a very good defender with a decent three-point shot. He’s not super tall at 6’6″, but his 6’10” wingspan gives him the ability to keep all sorts of players in front of him. He was also a 35.8 percent shooter from range in his final season at Nevada, a solid enough clip for a guy that projects to be a bench player.

Daquan Jeffries is another option here, who shot a higher percentage on more attempts than Martin (36.6 percent on 4.0 attempts per game) and has a longer wingspan (6’11”), but isn’t the defender that Martin is. He’s still a considerable option and has plenty of two-way potential, and he may also be closer to LA’s range since he’s not as well-known.

The LA Clippers could surprise us in the NBA Draft and package their picks for a player earlier in the second round, and if that’s the case, expect them to be higher-upside versions of the players we’ve listed above. Otherwise, keep an eye out on draft night for the players we’ve listed above — most should still be around when the Clippers make their picks later on.