The Los Angeles Clippers are adding to their front office staff before the NBA Draft in about a week, as they've landed an executive who used to be in their division, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
“Former Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair, the 2022-23 NBA executive of the Year, is joining the Los Angeles Clippers in an advisor role, sources tell ESPN,” Charania wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
McNair and the Kings parted ways after the team failed to make the playoffs and lost to the Dallas Mavericks in the Play-In Tournament. Before that, the Kings were near the top of the Western Conference in 2023, which led McNair to win the Executive of the Year award. The Kings were the No. 3 seed in the conference, but lost to the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the playoffs.
Since then, the Kings have missed the playoffs two seasons in a row. McNair was with the team for five seasons, and they were 195-205 in that period. There were high expectations for the Kings this season after acquiring DeMar DeRozan, but Mike Brown was fired and De'Aaron Fox was traded during the year.
Article Continues BelowMcNair has shown that he has what it takes to find talent and make big deals, and the Clippers may need that type of expertise in their front office.
The Clippers had a solid season this year, and they made it all the way to the second round before losing to the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs. Kawhi Leonard and James Harden proved to be enough for the Clippers to be one of the better teams in the league, and players such as Norman Powell and Ivica Zubac played above their standards this season.
Going into the offseason, the key for the Clippers should be continuing to find depth to surround their stars, and McNair can be key in that.