It's been a very productive offseason for the LA Clippers, who through their various roster additions have easily become among the most likely teams to finish in the top four in the Western Conference in the 2025-26 season. Additionally, their signing of Brook Lopez indirectly put the Milwaukee Bucks in a very tough position moving forward.
Back in the first week of July, Lopez signed a two-year, $18 million deal with the Clippers. It was a big-time deal for LA as they got a fantastic defender on the interior and another big body to help lighten the workload of Ivica Zubac. But what hasn't been talked about as much is the ripple effect this signing caused for the Bucks.
When Lopez left Milwaukee, it put that franchise in a tough position. All of sudden, they were without a rim protector. The roster had a massive hole, and that wasn't going to sit well with Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had tons of rumors surrounding him about potentially leaving the team.
Not wanting to risk upsetting their superstar, the Bucks had to act fast. As a response to Lopez's departure, they went out and signed Myles Turner from the Indiana Pacers in a move that I'm pretty sure is still taking some time to resonate for NBA fans. But in order to make that signing, the Bucks had to make the controversial decision to waive Damian Lillard.
LA signing Lopez created more problems for Milwaukee
It wasn't so much simply waiving Dame that created such a shock at the time, it was the fact that they did it using a "waive and stretch" maneuver in which Lillard will still get paid out his contract. Now, Milwaukee will be paying the injured point guard more than $22 million annually every year through 2030.
That is obviously a massive amount to pay someone to not play for you. But at the same time, what else could the Bucks have done? It's like in a game of chess where there's no good moves you can make, but you're forced to simply do something.
Now, Clippers fans can see that their team is a huge beneficiary of what's become a very unfortunate situation for their friends in the Eastern Conference. LA gets to enjoy the terrific defensive presence and championship experience that Brook Lopez will bring to their locker room.
The NBA is a business. Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. But it's clear the Clippers ended up on the right side of history here, and for a team that's usually regarded as extremely unlucky, this one is worth celebrating.