The Los Angeles Clippers narrowly missed the playoffs with losses to the Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans in the play-in tournament. Los Angeles was without superstar Kawhi Leonard all season long as he recovered from his ACL tear in the 2021 playoffs.

The Clippers are primed to bounce back with a healthy Paul George and Leonard duo. Los Angeles has solid depth around them but could make some moves. The Western Conference has become more talented since the Clippers' trip to the Conference Finals in 2021.

Los Angeles has the potential to become a title contender once again. While they were among the favorites to win a championship in 2020 and 2021, they ceased to meet expectations. In 2020, the Clippers blew a 3-1 lead to the Denver Nuggets, ending the possibility of a battle for LA against the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.

Improving their roster can help them make a deep playoff run. Los Angeles doesn't have much cap room, which would make it difficult to improve in free agency. Trading a player on the roster is the best route for them to make changes.

With that said, here is one player the Clippers must trade in the 2022 NBA offseason.

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The Clippers Trade That Must Be Made

Marcus Morris

Marcus Morris has been a solid role player for the Clippers over the past few seasons. However, Morris is on a sizable contract, with two years remaining on his four-year $64 million deal.

Morris is a solid two-way player, but Los Angeles needs to allocate more money to other places. The Clippers have a weakness at point guard, with no true distributor. Reggie Jackson is the only rotational point guard and operates more as a scorer than a facilitator. If Los Angeles is able to acquire a playmaking point guard through this deal, it could help their offense move away from being isolation-heavy.

Although isolation plays come naturally with George and Leonard, it shouldn't be relied upon so much. Adding a quality center is another option. Ivica Zubac doesn't have a solidified backup behind him.

If neither of these options are available, the Clippers could look to trade away Morris to free up cap room. They have at least $10 million each tied up to seven players, including Morris. Another $7.5 million is likely to be exercised with the team option on Zubac.

Freeing up cap room can help them in the future by saving space, or they could use the money to add new pieces to the roster. Morris plays the three or four position, which George, Leonard, and Robert Covington also play. They are all two-way players making a significant amount of money. So, the question becomes, do the Clippers want to keep the surplus at this position or trade Morris to improve other parts of the roster?

Other teams would likely express interest in Morris, as he fits the brand of a good role player. This season, he averaged 15.4 points per game along with 4.4 rebounds. He shot 43.4 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from three. His play on both ends of the floor would fit well for a team that needs to add depth at forward.

Although Morris has been an excellent role player for Los Angeles, it is time to move on and retool the roster.