When DeAndre Jordan left the Clippers to take a four-year max contract with the Mavericks in free agency, it created a huge hole in the Los Angeles lineup.
Jordan was key to what the Clippers did on the defensive end of the floor, and was a capable enough finisher at the rim to end the year leading the league in field goal percentage, thanks to plenty of perfect passes from the game’s best point guard in Chris Paul.
But perhaps more importantly, the way the salary cap works, the Clippers could have exceeded it to re-sign him. Now that he’s gone, and with very little money available to commit to a potential replacement, it’s easy to see why L.A.'s search is already becoming a bit desperate.
Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports:Free-agent center JaVale McGee is a serious consideration for the Los Angeles Clippers, and plans to have a telephone conversation with president and coach Doc Rivers on Saturday, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
The Clippers, who lost center DeAndre Jordan to the Dallas Mavericks in free agency, are taking a strong look at McGee, league sources told Yahoo Sports. The Clippers have roughly $2.2 million in exception space left to pay a player beyond the league’s minimum salary slot of $1.4 million.
McGee is someone who is currently out of the NBA, after he was traded from Denver to Philadelphia last season and reached a buyout agreement in March. If he could have realistically contributed anything of value, a playoff team would have snatched him up to bolster its postseason chances. But unfortunately, he’s never developed as expected, and has become known for making low-basketball-IQ plays more than anything else.
The Clippers may be able to switch gears and go small next season with lineups that feature Blake Griffin at center; they had some success doing that in the playoffs, specifically int he first round against the Spurs. But they will need to add a big body at some point for some depth off the bench -- just don’t expect whoever that is to be able to provide anywhere close to Jordan’s level of production.
