According to Law Murray of "The Athletic," the LA Clippers have made their official signing of TyTy Washington Jr. official, waiving John Poulakidas in the process. This news was announced by Murray on Monday evening as something that was planned to happen, and hours after, an update followed that everything was confirmed.
Saying goodbye to Poulakidas was definitely a tough decision, as he had a successful four-year career in the Ivy League at Yale. He is also only 22 years old, and hopefully someone else signs him later in the season, but the Clippers were forced to let him go with only a certain number of roster spots available.
That said, the Clippers most definitely made the right decision by retaining Washington Jr., a former first-round pick. He may not get much playing time now, yet if the Clippers made the decision to hold on, they clearly see his value coming to light in the future.
TyTy Washington Jr. must stay ready by applying what he learns from the veterans to his game
Having signed an Exhibit-10 deal, TyTy Washington Jr. proved himself to the coaching staff and front office during training camp, demonstrating that the LA Clippers are the best situation for him. He has veterans on top of veterans to learn from, including two in James Harden and Chris Paul, who are legends at their position.
Furthermore, if Washington Jr. shows the extra effort and becomes somebody that everyone on the team loves to have on the sidelines, Tyronn Lue will give him one of the first opportunities available if an injury occurs.
This is the best way to earn legitimate minutes, as although it is tough in the Clippers' system, Washington Jr. can look at the most recent example of Amir Coffey to see how he went from undrafted to a piece Lue relied on at one point over the last two seasons.
Moreover, the deal will likely be just for the season, so even though he has made the roster, Washington Jr. should still have a chip on his shoulder to show that his size, skillset, and age are reasons the front office should re-sign him at a later time.
The rest of the financial details will likely come out in the days ahead, but the Clippers did right, offering Washington Jr. his fourth opportunity in the NBA after coming out of the Kentucky Wildcats basketball program as the 29th pick in 2022.