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The NBA Draft is just a few days away and free agency is not far behind. Following the end of the 2022 NBA season, every team is going to look to improve their roster and go in whatever direction they choose, whether it's tanking or championship contention. The LA Clippers have their eyes on an NBA Championship and, apparently, Indiana Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon.
ESPN's Zach Lowe posted another episode of his popular ‘Lowe Post' podcast on Tuesday with Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and ESPN NBA Draft analyst Jonathan Givony. In the nearly two-hour episode, Lowe mentioned that the LA Clippers are interested in Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon.
Here's what Zach Lowe had to say:
“I actually… I had heard yesterday that the Clippers, they kicked around Malcolm Brogdon and that made a lot of sense to me. And then I subsequently heard that they’re — of course, every team kicks around lots of stuff. I don’t think Malcolm Brogdon’s going to the Clippers. Brogdon fits anywhere, but he's also injured all the time.”
That was followed by this extra tidbit from Givony as well:
“Myles Turner also definitely someone that they're going to look at.”
Malcolm Brogdon is coming off a down year with the Pacers. In the 2021-22 season, Brogdon averaged 19.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5.9 assists on 44.8 percent shooting from the field and 31.2 percent from three in only 36 appearances.
Just a year prior, Brogdon averaged 21.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.9 assists on 45.3 percent shooting from the field and 38.8 percent from three.
RELATED: 3 Reasons The Clippers Must Trade For Kyrie Irving
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While Zach Lowe did point out that the 2016 NBA Rookie of the Year is unlikely to end up on the Clippers, it's not something completely out of the realm of possibility. The Clippers do have the expiring pieces as well as salaries to make a deal work, and their position of need right now is the point guard spot.
Brogdon came in for a workout with the LA Clippers before the 2016 NBA Draft, and then-head coach Doc Rivers repeatedly mentioned how impressed he was by Brogdon.
As always, the biggest issue for the Clippers and this trade target is his injury history. Brogdon is coming off a season where he played the fewest games in a season in his career at 36. In his two years prior in Indiana, Brogdon played 54 of a possible 73 during the COVID-paused NBA season and 56 out of 72 in the year after that one. In total, Brogdon has played 333 regular season games out of a possible 473. Not great.
The Clippers front office always seems to work without having rumors leak, but for what it's worth, the organization does seem pretty confident in the group they currently have. That's not to say a trade to improve the roster won't happen tomorrow, in a week, or in a month, but as constructed, the Clippers believe they have enough to win.
Should the Clippers pursue a trade for Malcolm Brogdon? What about Kyrie Irving, who the Clippers were named as a possible trade destination?
The NBA Draft and free agency over the next few weeks will tell us everything we need to know.
