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Blockbuster NBA Trade Idea to Save the LA Clippers' Future
The 2025-26 Los Angeles Clippers are officially cooked.
No matter how much they feign optimism, and no matter how many disgruntled franchise icons they send home, there is no saving this season.
However, they may be able to salvage their future.
No, we aren't talking about eventual gobs of cap space. We're talking about regaining control of their next two first-round picks from the Oklahoma City Thunder, and we're giving them an opportunity to lose with actual purpose and to start anew.
"Why would the Oklahoma City Thunder ever agree to that?"
We're so very glad you asked.
Full Trade Details
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LA Clippers get: Jarace Walker, Isaiah Jackson, 2026 first-round pick (their own, via OKC), 2027 first-round pick (their own, via OKC)
Indiana Pacers get: Ivica Zubac
Oklahoma City Thunder get: LAC 2030 first-round pick, LAC 2031 first-round pick (swap), LAC 2032 first-round pick, IND 2027 first-round pick, IND 2030 second-round pick, IND 2032 second-round pick
Why the Los Angeles Clippers Do It
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LA Clippers get: Jarace Walker, Isaiah Jackson, 2026 first-round pick (their own), 2027 first-round pick (their own)
LA Clippers lose: Ivica Zubac, 2030 first-round pick, 2031 first-round pick (swap), 2032 first-round pick
Giving up control of Zubac and three first-rounders is a premium price for the Clippers to pay just to resecure their next two draft picks. But the cost is worth the prize.
Those 2026 and 2027 first-rounders are more valuable to L.A. than anyone else. That includes Oklahoma City. This buys the Clippers absolute freedom for the rest of this year (and next year) to hit reset and build a more sustainable core that's not beholden to age, injuries and placeholder timelines.
You almost can't put a price on that flexibility, which would include the ability to ship out James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and whoever else the front office pleases for whatever can be gleaned in return. Rostering their next two firsts likewise fits with the plan to break open Steve Ballmer's piggy bank during the 2027 offseason.
L.A.'s bet here is not without risk. It's counting on those later-year selections having less value than these 2026 and 2027 firsts. But the risk profile dips considerably now this season is underway.
The Clippers know they're awful. If the season ended today, they'd already have top-four lottery odds ahead of an incoming draft class that has experts going gaga. They'll have no trouble sustaining that pace after shipping out Zubac (and presumably others).
Why the Indiana Pacers Do It
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Indiana Pacers get: Ivica Zubac
Indiana Pacers lose: Isaiah Jackson, Jarace Walker, 2027 first-round pick, 2030 second-round pick, 2032 second-round pick
Surrendering a future first-round pick when you have a bottom-four record typically isn't considered good practice. Then again, the Indiana Pacers aren't your typical bottom-four team.
Championship contention should resume in earnest next season once Tyrese Haliburton returns from his Achilles injury. The uncertainty of what he'll look like complicates how the Pacers go about their business, but adding a top lottery pick and Zubac should only make his life easier while arming the team with more escape hatches to explore if things go wrong.
None of the outbound assets here should give Indy pause. Walker's future with the team is murky given his skill set and lack of defensive growth, and his extension eligibility next summer will force the Pacers to render a verdict on him anyway.
There might be some upside to the 2027 pick. But if Indy is even halfway decent, one first and two seconds is a reasonable price to pay for a starting center on a team-friendly deal that pays him $40.6 million combined in 2026-27 and 2027-28.
Though Zubac isn't often associated with floor-running chaos, he has thrived on faster iterations of the Clippers. His rim protection remains stellar, and he has a quicker lateral gait than credited when he's pulled out of the paint. He doesn't provide stretch alongside Pascal Siakam, but the Pacers can turn to Jay Huff for that. The defensive ceiling in lineups with Zubac, Siakam, Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith would be bonkers.
Indiana remains under the tax this year as part of this trade and isn't tacking on much money in 2026-27. Going from Jackson and Walker to Zubac adds about $4 million and keeps the Pacers around $12.9 million below next season's tax. Much of that space will get eaten up by this year's draft pick, which complicates Bennedict Mathurin's restricted free agency, but Indy was always going to grapple with that issue.
Why the Oklahoma City Thunder Do It
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Oklahoma City Thunder get: LAC 2030 first-round pick, LAC 2031 first-round pick (swap), LAC 2032 first-round pick, IND 2027 first-round pick, IND 2030 second-round pick, IND 2032 second-round pick
Oklahoma City Thunder lose: LAC 2026 first-round pick, LAC 2027 first-round pick
Punting on a 2026 Clippers pick with a viable chance of landing inside the top four would be a reckless move for most teams, but not the Oklahoma City Thunder.
For starters, there's no guarantee the pick remains so high in the lottery order. The Clippers have every incentive to try racking up victories without reacquiring it. Beyond that, the Thunder simply don't need it.
Carving out minutes even for the No. 1 overall selection will be tough sledding on a title contender that's already the league's deepest squad. And while Oklahoma City is about to get more expensive, it isn't yet prohibitively so.
Stockpiling cost-controlled prospects down the line, as operating costs keep rising, is more important than doing so now. Especially when the Thunder have imminent alternatives. They will still have at least two first-rounders in June's draft, if not three, after sending back the Clippers selection.
Oklahoma City does not have the same draft-pick optionality down the line. As of now, it has zero additional first-rounders in 2030 or beyond. This deal gives it an extra selection in 2030 and 2032, with a swap option in 2031.
The Thunder are free to keep Zubac for themselves. Sending out Ousmane Dieng and Kenrich Williams makes the math work, though it would leave Oklahoma City slightly into the tax.
Zubac's modest price point through 2027-28 ($40.6 million total) could prove appealing with the roster getting more expensive and Isaiah Hartenstein becoming a potential flight risk if the team declines his $28.5 million club option next summer.
Still, there is upside to Indiana's 2027 first. Nobody can be sure what Tyrese Haliburton will look like. And even if the Thunder think that pick conveys in the 20s, the total haul—three firsts, one swap, two seconds—is worth a discussion when looking at their current timeline and other inbound draft commitments.
Dan Favale is a National NBA Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.
