The 5 Best Value Free Agents for LA Clippers to Pursue in 2015 Free Agency
Head coach Doc Rivers talks all the time about running the Los Angeles Clippers the way the San Antonio Spurs take care of business in south Texas. The Clippers are following the Spurs model, so he claims.
That's not necessarily true, though. "The Spurs model," as people call it, is predicated on finding contributors in the bargain bins and building them into helpful rotation players. The Clippers have done the opposite, scraping the bottom of the bin and coming away with only dust.
That has to change this summer.
The Clips have cycled in and out so many guys on minimum contracts that it's hard to remember who has actually been there and who hasn't. No one is even leaving a "Brooks was here" type of mark.
Was Stephen Jackson actually a Clippers player, or was that just a hallucination? Did Nate Robinson really spend time playing for Doc this year, or were we all tricked into believing a short guy who loved to dribble was the real Nate?
Even the ones who have stuck around haven't helped much. And it all led to the Clippers having the worst bench of any playoff team this past season.
Los Angeles might have the best starting five in the NBA, even with the criticism it receives regarding its lack of athleticism on the wings. But the first unit, like any other, could still use some help.
This summer is Doc's chance to implement that Spurs model everyone loves to reference so much. We have yet to see any evidence that the Clippers front office, as currently constructed, is capable of bringing in help on the cheap. But guys who can make a difference are out there.
The Clips just have to find them.
Alan Anderson (SG) 6'6", 220 Lbs.
1 of 5
Alan Anderson wouldn't provide the Clippers with a ton of extra athleticism on the perimeter, but he is someone who could be a candidate to sign for the taxpayer mid-level exception (about $3.7 million), the only exception Los Angeles would have if it were to re-sign DeAndre Jordan. (We're operating under the premise that the Clippers do bring back DJ for a max deal in all these scenarios and, thus, don't have the full mid-level exception.)
Anderson is a two-way player who was the Brooklyn Nets' best defender this past season.
He's intuitive off the ball and feisty on it. He's clever when defending cutters and shifty when following them around screens. It's no coincidence that he was the best Kyle Korver defender during Brooklyn's first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks.
Anderson is already 32 years old, so realistically, he wouldn't get a bunch of years on his next contract—maybe a couple guaranteed with a team option for a third—but he's a capable shooter (35 percent from long range in 2014-15) who can help immediately.
The Clips' window isn't closing.
They're not in as dire a situation as many claim after giving away a 3-1 Western Conference Semifinals lead to the Houston Rockets last month. But they are in the middle of said window. Los Angeles needs assets for the future, but if it can help the present with an occasional veteran now (especially considering that Rivers doesn't love to play young players), that wouldn't be inherently damaging.
Al-Farouq Aminu (SF) 6'9", 215 Lbs.
2 of 5
Whether or not the Clippers sign Anderson, they can add some athleticism to the perimeter by bringing Al-Farouq Aminu back to Los Angeles.
You might recall the Wake Forest product from his days in Los Angeles. Over time, he's become remembered as "the guy the Clippers drafted instead of Paul George," who went two picks later in 2010. But that's an unfair standard for Aminu, whom the Clippers eventually traded for fellow Demon Deacons star Chris Paul after just one season as a pro.
Aminu never hit the ceiling the Clippers hoped he would (mostly because of his clanky shot), but he's still helpful on a playoff team, as he showed with the Dallas Mavericks this past season.
He would immediately become Los Angeles' best defender on the wing and could give guys like Matt Barnes and J.J. Redick rest throughout games. Heck, he'd have an outside shot at cracking the starting lineup if Barnes started to play like a 35-year-old. Here's another valuable trait he'd bring: rebounding.
The Clippers improved their defensive rebounding this past season (mostly because Jordan turned into an animal on the boards), but the wings still struggle hitting the glass.
Redick has never been a rebounder; the same goes for Jamal Crawford. Barnes' rebound rate declined to his worst output since 2005-06, and even though Paul is an above-average boarder for a point guard, a 1 (not named Russell Westbrook) can only make so much of an impact corralling missed shots.
Aminu's rebound rate (13.7) ranked second among small forwards and shooting guards this past season, per ESPN, behind only Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. (Note: ESPN lists Draymond Green as a small forward, though he played more as a 4 this past season.)
If Aminu could take care of the dirty work, an offense that has ranked No. 1 in points per possession two years in a row could absorb the hit his lack of shooting would bring.
Ed Davis (PF/C) 6'10", 225 Lbs.
3 of 5
The Clippers had a shot at Ed Davis last offseason. Maybe this year, they can make amends.
After a strong season playing for "the other team" in Los Angeles, Davis' value could be too high to sign for as cheap as the Clippers might like. Still, Davis wasn't dominant enough for it to be out of the question for him to take a minimum deal to get playing time for a winner.
After a failed season from Spencer Hawes, the Clips have to do whatever they can to find another big man. They can't afford another season of Glen Davis playing the role of the third big, even if he did perform passably during the postseason. But Rivers doesn't necessarily need to prioritize floor stretchability when he goes to bring in a big, as he's done in past years, exemplified by the Hawes and Byron Mullens signings.
Let's face reality for a second: Hawes is going to be a Clippers player next year.
Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe the Clips find some miraculous way to unload the three years remaining on his contract (even without many, or any, assets to grease the deal), but it's tough to trade a poor defensive big man who shot under 40 percent from the field, completely lost his confidence and dropped out of his coach's rotation by the end of the year.
Who would want to take on three years of that depression?
Rivers has to play Hawes next year, because if he can't dump him, the next-best option is reviving him. We've seen guys have down years and then bounce back. Maybe he won't be what the Clippers thought he'd be around this time last summer, but there's still an outside shot that he can help in some way. Turning him around after an albatross of a season would, after all, be the Spursian thing to do.
So what does all this have to do with Davis? If the Clippers are, in fact, going to give Hawes time again, then they can look at other types of talent to take over the spot as the third big man. Davis can rebound, play some physical defense and finish around the rim. He won't stretch, but he would help.
This might be one of those scenarios when it's smart to let talent be the determining factor over natural fit.
Jason Smith (PF/C) 7'0", 240 Lbs.
4 of 5
Hey, I didn't say the Clippers couldn't go after someone who would stretch the floor, just that they don't need to prioritize it. Let's call this "the miracle signing."
If the Clippers are able to trade Hawes, you'll probably see them target a similar player, though those types hardly come for the minimum. A 7-footer who can step out to the three-point line always has value.
Jason Smith was always just a mid-range shooter. But the New York Knicks, in an out-of-character move, actually developed him. By the end of this year, he was a legitimate three-point threat, comfortably sinking seven of 12 long balls over the final 10 contests of the season. How's that for small sample size?
But it's not just the numbers. It's the comfort level. Smith looks natural shooting from three. And there's value in that from a 7-footer.
Smith signed for the mini mid-level exception last year, and it's possible he's even more valued this summer now that he's sinking jumpers from behind the arc. But the Clips could make a run at a 29-year-old who has never had the opportunity to contribute to a topnotch team. If the Clips have their mini mid-level open, there's a chance that he could slot into that spot.
Most importantly, bringing in Smith would continue the trend of adding guys who have had past issues with Blake Griffin (see: Lamar Odom and Matt Barnes). Unfamiliar with any Griffin-Smith rivalries? Well, you don't have to be anymore.
Sergio Rodriguez (PG) 6'3", 168 Lbs.
5 of 5
"Sergio Rodriguez? How do I know that name? It sounds so familiar!" 93 percent of readers say.
You might know Rodriguez from his work for the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings and Knicks...from five to eight years ago.
Yep, Rodriguez hasn't played in the NBA since the 2009-10 season, but it's not because of a lack of talent. Actually, the 28-year-old has improved since leaving the league for Real Madrid.
He's a legitimate three-point shooter now (40 percent on 3.3 attempts per game over the past four years). He better understands how to run an offense. He's an aggressive scorer who has become highly efficient and barely missed out on a 50-40-90 season in 2013-14.
Rodriguez has an opt-out this summer and is both talented and effective enough to return to a legitimate NBA career. But the questions remain: Does he even want to come back to the league? And if he does, what would his value be on the open market?
The Clips struggled at backup point guard this year, using Robinson, Lester Hudson, Jordan Farmar, Austin Rivers, Jamal Crawford and even Blake Griffin in that role—one Rodriguez could capably fill. If he were willing to come back to the United States for the minimum (meaning he'd have to take a pay cut), the Clips could have an opportunity to buy low on a potentially high-reward outcome.
Follow Fred Katz on Twitter at @FredKatz.
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics are current as of June 2 and are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
