After lots of worry about who the LA Clippers would look to complete the starting frontcourt at power forward, the front office took action and signed Rui Hachimura to a two-year, $28 million deal with a team option. That’s excellent work from Lawrence Frank, as Hachimura was one of the best players at his position and is coming off an excellent postseason for the Los Angeles Lakers. However, despite the addition of Hachimura, one massive question remains: who will rebound the basketball?
Crashing the glass has always been a major flaw of Hachimura’s, and when that is paired with Brook Lopez, who is the Clippers’ lead center, it’s relatively easy to conclude that rebounding will be problematic next season.
And, with Hachimura basically soaking up the entire non-taxpayer mid-level exception, there’s not really any money left to spend on a big man who thrives in boxing out and grabbing boards.
The Clippers’ starting lineup next season will have the bare minimum rebounding
At six-foot-eight and 230 pounds, which is what he is listed at, theoretically, Rui Hachimura should be an excellent rebounder. He has the size, strength, and durability to hang with the best of the best in the paint and leave a positive impact.
Unfortunately, for the LA Clippers, that’s not the case. Hachimura has averaged 4.6 boards across his seven years in the NBA. The cherry on top? He’s coming off a career low of 3.3 with the Los Angeles Lakers.
That’s atrocious, especially for someone the Clippers will need down low.
More notably, one of Hachimura's primary flaws doesn’t mesh well with Brook Lopez. He, too, has the tools to do damage around the rim and rack up rebounds, but he simply can’t.
This past season, Lopez averaged a measly 3.6 boards for the Clippers. In no world is this number excusable for a seven-footer that weighs over 280 pounds.
It gets worse; Derrick Jones Jr. is not really known for his ability to crash the glass, and neither is anyone in the backcourt.
So, if you thought the Clippers’ rebounding was bad last season, it looks like, based on what’s seen on paper, things are about to get a lot worse.
The only way out is through a trade, and following Hachimura's signing, Lawrence Frank needs to get to work immediately on finding a solution.
In the event no one is added, there’s a real chance the Clippers might be the worst rebounding team in the league.
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