Undrafted rookie free agents are the most difficult to develop, as most have a reason why they fell off the board. Yet, teams like the Los Angeles Lakers with Austin Reaves and the Dallas Mavericks with Ryan Nembhard still managed to show interest and sign the right youngsters; meanwhile, the LA Clippers cannot even strike gold with their draft picks, making their aging core look even worse.
In fact, not a single one of the Clippers’ recent draft picks has come close to serviceable status. They were all projects the front office has seemingly given up on.
Additionally, given how oddly ordinary this season has been, some of them, like Jordan Miller, Kobe Brown, and Kobe Sanders, have actually been in the rotation. However, their increased playing time does not justify the claim that LA found several diamonds in the rough; without injuries, almost all of them would still be consistent DNPs.
The LA Clippers are stuck in the middle between underdeveloped and too old
To claim the LA Clippers succeeded on a draft pick, the best way to properly conclude is if the players showed enough promise, potential, and growth for the front office to be interested in signing them to a long-term contract, like they did with Terance Mann.
Furthermore, earning that high level of interest from Lawrence Frank means the player has to perform flawlessly for an extended period of time, to the point where he has priority over veterans around the league, which the Clippers always have their eyes on.
On the contrary, the Clippers’ system is built so that, most of the time, a young player will not even receive the opportunity they were drafted for. This hinders a combination of factors in their growth, and when deadlines approach, the front office will simply waive them or decline their team options.
Take it from Kobe Brown: the 30th pick in the 2023 NBA draft, who has only played 824 minutes through 14 games in his third season in the league.
As a first-round pick, there is no excuse Tyronn Lue can make about why he did not give a former first-round pick legitimate minutes. Yet, his fourth-year team option was declined, and he is expected to be either traded at the deadline or not re-signed in the offseason.
That said, Lue does not have a single young star that would be in the rotation if Kawhi Leonard, Bradley Beal, and Derrick Jones Jr. were active for every game. They simply have players who are still being developed or veterans nearing retirement, which is not ideal under any circumstances.