LA Clippers: Ranking the 7 most valuable players on today’s roster
By Evan Desai
No. 6 most valuable player on today’s LA Clippers roster: Nicolas Batum
Nicolas Batum is going to be a free agent this summer, and needs to be brought back.
Batum was a key part of the Clippers’ success with smaller lineups in the postseason, and that winning formula will be useful for the team next year too.
Batum still provides a lot of value as a shooter, as he shot 40.4% from three this year. He’s shot a solid 36% from three-point land in his career.
It’s nice to have a 6’8″ player who can play the two-guard as well as both forward positions.
That type of versatility is incredibly valuable to the Clippers, especially on defense.
He plays great defense, and really proved his defensive value in particular in the Mavericks series. Ty Lue put him on the Dallas bigs at times so that he’d be able to switch onto Luka Doncic in the pick-and-roll game. Batum was very successful, and also provides nice veteran leadership as a 13-year vet in this league.