Throughout his time in college, in the draft process, and even during the summer league, Keaton Wagler’s biggest flaw was crystal clear: scoring in the paint efficiently. He wouldn’t take attempts at the iron much, and when he did, he wasn’t all that great. Ultimately, this stemmed from Wagler’s frame, as he officially measured at six-foot-five and 188 pounds.
At the LA Clippers’ media day, Wagler revealed his offseason focus: adding muscle. This is excellent news, and in the grand scheme of things, will help the fifth overall pick have a higher success rate at the cup than he’s had in previous years.
Joey Linn, a credible independent writer who covers the Clippers, reported that Tyronn Lue said Wagler “has been in the facility all summer long.”
Ty Lue says Keaton Wagler is going to get a lot of opportunities to make mistakes and grow through mistakes in his rookie season.
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) September 28, 2026
Said he has been in the facility all summer long and has already learned a lot from the veterans.
Progress will take time, as Wagler is just a rookie, but these promising signs before the season have begun point to great things ahead.
Added muscle will go a very long way for Keaton Wagler in the paint
Keaton Wagler’s freshman numbers for the Illinois Fighting Illini pretty much captured the entire story to a T. He could obviously score, with an average of 17.9 points, and shoot the three-ball at an efficient rate (39.7%). Still, he shot 48.9% on two-pointers with just 6.4 attempts per game.
Just to put these numbers into perspective, some other guards in the 2026 draft class, who are shorter in height, like Darius Acuff Jr. (50.8 2PT% on 10.8 attempts) and Kingston Flemings (50.3 2PT% on 9.7 attempts), did better around the rim.
In summer league, while Wagler had a successful run, the same flaw was put on display time and time again.
Of course, adding muscle won’t directly lead to stronger production from Wagler inside the paint, but it’ll definitely help open up his game to levels he couldn’t imagine.
He’ll be able to get more buckets, see extra opportunities at the free-throw line, and further take advantage of his playmaking ability by finding the open man once he draws defenders.
And, honestly, Wagler already has the tough part down, as he has shown countless flashes of his ability to maneuver through traffic and make the right read.
That said, Wagler is taking steps in the right direction despite just being drafted to the LA Clippers. This makes it easy to believe he’s going to pan out in the league, considering his work ethic is through the roof.
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