It is safe to say the 2023-24 season did not turn out how nearly anyone could have imagined for the LA Clippers. Beginning the year with a mostly healthy roster for what felt like the first time ever, the Clippers were poised to run it back with their same core group from the previous season until a massive development one week into the season changed everything.
At the tail end of October, the front office opted to take a chance on adding more high-end talent and traded for James Harden, which completely changed the dynamic of LA's on-court process. Getting an additional ball-handler was in theory going to open things up for Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, allowing Russell Westbrook to thrive in a bench role.
For a while, that process worked exceedingly well. The Clippers were one of the best teams in basketball for much of the winter, climbing to the top of the Western Conference standings. But as injuries and other inconsistencies cropped up to end the year, it was the same old story: The Clippers did not have their best player healthy when he was needed most.
As the offseason arrives, there is potential for massive change within the Clippers' locker room before the 2024-25 season begins. There are five players that will almost assuredly not be back with the team.
Xavier Moon
After losing in six games to the Dallas Mavericks, LA will have some serious soul-searching to do. For the last five seasons, they have chosen to build their roster around two superstar wings who are both uniquely talented and uniquely flawed. But regardless of whether both Kawhi and Paul remain with the team past this summer, certain role players do not seem to have a path forward with the Clippers.
One of the most obvious players on that list of role players is Xavier Moon. After going undrafted in the 2017 NBA Draft out of Morehead State, Moon spent multiple stints with overseas professional teams. He played in France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Israel before getting his NBA chance by signing with the Clippers' G League team in 2021.
In his three seasons in the NBA thus far, Xavier has not shown much to prove that he belongs in the league as a rotation player. This past year, he played in just 14 games and shot 32% from the floor. Since he is already 29 years old, the chances that he takes a leap or vastly improves as a player are slim to none, and there would be little reason for the Clippers to keep him around for next season.
P.J. Tucker
When the Clippers made their trade for James Harden, they got back some residual pieces in the deal as well. One of which was P.J. Tucker. Of course, he was just the throw-in to get the deal done, but there were some legitimate reasons to believe the grizzled vet could actually give this team a real boost.
The second-oldest player in the league this season, Tucker brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Clippers' locker room. A polished and proven playoff player, P.J. seemed ready to provide leadership to LA's young players and make an impact in whatever on-court role he found himself in.
But Tucker did not exactly end up contributing in the way he initially envisioned. After his first month as a Clipper in November, he did not play for nearly three entire months until the final week of February. P.J. was thoroughly frustrated with the organization and how his talent was being utilized, even voicing his concerns publicly at one point.
It is no secret that Tucker is not who he once was, and is likely nearing the end of his professional career. He may not be on an NBA roster at all next season, but even if he is, it is unlikely to be the Clippers'.
Russell Westbrook
After a tumultuous season and a half with the Lakers, Russell Westbrook was in need of a change of scenery. At the time, the Lake Show was desperate to offload him as well. So when he was officially moved at the 2023 trade deadline to Utah, there was certainly a sigh of relief from both parties.
Not in a big rush to play for the Jazz, Westbrook sought a buyout and instead signed with the Clippers. From the jump, Russ on the Clippers felt like a night and day experience from him playing with the Lakers. There was considerably less pressure on him to perform given the circumstances, and Westbrook fell in nicely beside Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
But even with Westbrook's solid performance to end the 2022-23 season (capped off by a game-sealing block on Devin Booker in the playoffs), the Clippers knew he was aging and they were still looking to invest in reinforcements. So when they traded for Harden last fall, Russ was moved to the bench.
Seemingly happy to accept a bench role to help the team, Westbrook became the Clippers' sixth man. But in playing the lowest minutes average of his career this past season, it was clear Russ is not quite the player he once was. After signing him to a two-year deal last summer, the Clippers may try to find a way to move his now-expiring contract.
Bones Hyland
The 16th-overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft out of Virginia Commonwealth, Bones Hyland has now split his three career seasons between the Denver Nuggets and Clippers. Coming over to LA at the 2023 deadline via a four-team trade, Bones joined a new team seemingly in the same tier of contender as his old one.
But after finishing his first season as a Clipper, Hyland had to sit back and watch his former team make a run to the NBA Finals and take home the first championship in that franchise's history. As a competitive spirit, it seemed to be something that bothered Bones.
And who could blame him? Leaving a team and then watching them win a championship without you has the potential to strike a big blow into your confidence if you do not approach it with the right mindset. Headed into the 2023-24 season, Bones was ready to unleash his scoring prowess and show Denver a thing or two about what they missed out on in trading him.
But that goal was effectively put to rest the moment the Clippers traded for James Harden. Hyland's minutes plummeted, and he never quite got the opportunity he was hoping for. Situation must be considered, but Bones put up a career-low scoring average and shooting percentage this season. There is little reason LA would be highly motivated to keep him around.
Daniel Theis
Beginning the season with the Pacers, Daniel Theis was part of an Indiana team where he had seen his role decrease the previous year. With Myles Turner, Jalen Smith and other talented frontcourt players taking up a heavy percentage of minutes on the roster, Theis had been relegated to a backup role and was essentially out of the rotation.
To start the 2023-24 season, not much changed. So when the Clippers encountered an early-November knee injury to Mason Plumlee, they were all of a sudden left without a big man to back up Ivica Zubac. After some quick looking around the league to see what viable replacements might be available, the Clippers quickly grew to like the idea of Daniel Theis.
He would agree to a contract buyout with Indiana before signing with LA. When he arrived, Daniel instantly filled the gap left by the injured Plumlee and quickly developed strong chemistry with the likes of James Harden and Russell Westbrook, becoming an effective screener, roller, and lob finisher.
But when Mason came back from injury, he eventually filled into his previous role once again. Theis did not become useless, but we can say his usefulness was certainly diminished. Suffice to say, if the Clippers are choosing between one and the other this offseason, it feels reasonable to say Plumlee would be an easy choice in their mind.