Yanic Konan Niederhauser unintentionally threw Lawrence Frank a job-saving lifeline

Prior to having a role on the bench, Yanic Konan Niederhauser’s 63 minutes could not be compared to Ryan Kalkbrenner and Maxime Raynaud’s; the Penn State center was complacent, watching his draft peers thrive from hundreds and thousands of miles away. Due to the drastic difference in rookie production, the blame fell on Lawrence Frank, whose job was at stake until last night’s 41-point win versus the Sacramento Kings was decided.

Everyone thought Lawrence Frank was oblivious to drafting obvious talent. His history was not good, and if the 2025 class had gone to waste, Steve Ballmer would have been forced to extract an offseason flaw.

However, Niederhauser dominated in 25 minutes in a matchup with Raynaud. Both played well, but the Clippers’ rookie proved that with minutes, there is no gap.

Thus, the evident tension is starting to melt away, as Niderhauser has the potential to become a special talent in the NBA, saving Frank from the open waters of dismissal from the Clippers.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser had a loud 16 points that fans will never forget

Yanic Konan Niederhauser must merit a nickname for dunking everything within eye sight. He had several emphatic slams against the Sacramento Kings, and Doug Christie was clueless about why Tyronn Lue waited to unleash a beast of a center in the LA Clippers’ second unit.

In fact, Niederhauser posted 16 points(career-high) and six rebounds(career-high), and shot 6-8 from the field, the most made and most attempts he has taken as a rookie.

Overall, he tallied memories he would not forget, flexed his muscles on television at every chance, and hyped his teammates up as the LA Clippers’ lead grew from 20 to 30 and ended at 41.

Niederhauser impressed most with his coordination and ball-handling. He had one specific possession, which surprisingly was not dunked, where he saved Kawhi Leonard on a double-team, won with his first step against Drew Eubanks, and had a fancy, contorted finish right over the top of Keon Ellis.

This is rare, and regarding his connection with James Harden, which was clear as day, the rookie mentioned the former MVP's Houston Rockets days with Clint Capela. He looked up to them and now gets to learn the secrets to their success.

That said, Niederhauser was nothing but exciting to watch. He had the entire home crowd hyped, and ultimately did Lawrence Frank an unrepayable favor by proving that drafting him in the first round was the perfect decision.