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The Los Angeles Clippers are always a team to look out for when it comes to trades that could swing the league's contending picture. It may not have been the smoothest ride for the Clippers ever since they acquired both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in July 2019, but their front office almost always makes shrewd decisions in hopes of finally breaking through and winning the franchise's first championship.
Their first order of business this offseason with that goal in mind will be deciding what to do with the 30th pick of the 2023 NBA Draft. With the new CBA rules set to take effect soon, conventional wisdom dictates that keeping the pick may be in the Clippers' best interest.
After all, acquiring a contributor who'll be on an inexpensive rookie-scale contract could be immense given the difficulties the new CBA imposes on taxpaying teams regarding adding talent via trade (acquiring more salary will be difficult) and free agency (they won't be able to use the taxpayer midlevel exception if they cross the second tax apron).
However, the Clippers have a few midsized contract on their books that they could, perhaps, package in exchange for yet another game-changing acquisition on the trade market. In particular, the expiring contracts of Eric Gordon (whose contract could be fully non-guaranteed for next year) and Marcus Morris Sr. may well be attractive to rebuilding teams who would want to take on those contracts for some additional draft capital.
Whatever it may be, with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George not getting any younger, expect the Clippers to do whatever it takes to surround their two stars with the best possible team.
With that in mind, here is a last-minute prediction for what the Clippers would do with the 19th overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft.
Clippers package Eric Gordon and Marcus Morris Sr., along with the 30th pick of the 2023 NBA Draft for an upgrade
It's hard to definitively say what the Clippers are planning to do. Their front office, after all, is one of the most unpredictable in the NBA. But plugged-in analysts such as Zach Lowe have prognosticated that the Clippers may package the likes of Eric Gordon, Marcus Morris Sr., Norman Powell, and Robert Covington in order to consolidate some talent. That isn't unreasonable; even if the presence of those four helps insure the Clippers in the event of an injury to Kawhi Leonard and/or Paul George, deciding to opt for quality rather than quantity isn't the worst idea in the world.
Perhaps the Clippers convince Kristaps Porzingis to accept his player option in order for the Washington Wizards to recoup some more assets in the wake of the Bradley Beal trade. Porzingis would then give the Clippers a tall inside-outside threat who has inexplicably remained healthier than both George and Leonard over the past two seasons.
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Another target the Clippers can pursue with their package of midsized contracts and the 30th pick of the 2023 NBA Draft could be Atlanta Hawks big man John Collins. Collins would provide the Clippers with an athletic, versatile big man — a lob threat who could also help space the floor in doses.
The Hawks, however, may be more interested in either Norman Powell or Robert Covington in such a deal, although the Clippers' preference would be to trade either Gordon or Morris. Morris, in particular, is likely on his way out, especially after reports of him being discontented in LA have surfaced.
The Clippers surely won't be lacking in options in the trade front; perhaps they could even swing a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers for old friend Tobias Harris, although Harris' contract is also expiring, so doing so may not be worth the price.
Given the trade options the Clippers should have come draft night, holding onto the 30th pick of the 2023 NBA Draft makes little sense if they were to prioritize competing for next season. If relinquishing that pick is what it costs to bring in a player who could help immediately, then the Clippers should, by all means, give up that selection.
After all, it'll be difficult for the Clippers (or any team for that matter) to nab an instant contributor with a pick this late in the draft. This is not to say that doing so impossible. But the odds are certainly against them pulling that off.
Sure, the likes of Trayce Jackson-Davis or maybe even James Nnaji could be on the board by then (they are available at #30 in ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel's latest mock draft), helping the Clippers shore up their frontcourt. But is drafting those players while holding onto the likes of Gordon, Morris, and Covington a better outcome than to end up with a player of Kristaps Porzingis' caliber?
It's unclear which exact player the Clippers trade for on draft night. But expect the Clippers to select for another team when it's time for Adam Silver to announce the final pick of the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft.
