Los Angeles Clippers: Dwight Howard and Other Moves the Clippers Should Make

The Los Angeles Clippers are a team that are on the verge of making the playoffs and have a lot of talent to build around.

Some of the Clippers' most glaring needs are a point guard who can play defense and hit the open shot, a small forward who can hold his own both on offense and defense and a low-post threat on the defensive end.

Here are five moves the Clippers should pursue.

Trade for Jrue Holiday and Andre Iguodala

It'll take a lot to tear Jrue Holiday away from Philadelphia, but the Clippers just might have the assets they need to make a move. Also, Iguodala would fill a huge hole that the Clippers need filled at the small forward position.

The Clippers can offer a first-round draft pick, Mo Williams, Chris Kaman, Al Farouq Aminu and Eric Bledsoe for Holiday, Iguodala and Elton Brand's bad contract. 

Holiday would be an instant upgrade at the point guard position and he has a lot of potential to grow as a player, especially on the defensive end where his length and athleticism will be a huge plus. His shot is also pretty dependable and he is a good scorer.

In Iguodala the Clippers would add one of the top defenders in the league. He's also a great team player with good court vision and is also one of the most athletic players in the league. He would make a great alley-oop partner for Blake Griffin.

Trade for Dwight Howard

It's been a huge rumor as of late and it's a rumor that just might come true.

The Clippers have many trade assets due to their youth and they also have draft picks to spare which can help in the long run.

A fair trade for Dwight would probably end up seeing the Clippers trade a first rounder, Chris Kaman, DeAndre Jordan and either Aminu or Eric Bledsoe.

Orlando would get a lot of help in return and they could also use the Clippers' huge cap space to dump Hedo Turkoglu's contract.

The Clippers would kill two birds with one stone, bringing in the best post defender in the league and also adding a veteran small forward who has shown that he can be clutch and put up good numbers when surrounded by talent, something Turkoglu was deprived of in Toronto and Phoenix.

Orlando, on the other hand, would be getting the most they possibly could in return for Dwight.

A Clipper draft pick, especially if the Minnesota pick is traded, will land them a lottery pick (top-five pick in the case of the Timberwolves' pick) which would be invaluable in such a stacked draft.

They also get a veteran big man who is a year removed from being an All-Star, a promising big man who can block shots and a young player with potential in either Aminu or Bledsoe.

Draft Harrison Barnes or Terrence Jones

If the Clippers keep the Minnesota pick, there's a high chance it will end up being a top-five pick (it's the Timberwolves we're talking about for crying out loud).

This draft pick could net them either Harrison Barnes or Terrence Jones. Both players would be huge additions to the Clippers and help fill the void at the small forward position.

Both players are young, meaning they could grow and adjust their games according to the Clipper game.

Think of it like this, some top small forwards in the league are used to playing a certain way because they've been in the league for years, so they wouldn't mesh as well as someone who grows alongside Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon and becomes accustomed to their games.

Barnes would be the better choice, as his game is more perimeter oriented than Jones', which is something the Clippers need.

Either player would be a great draft choice because they would bring offense and defense to the position the Clippers need them most at.

Draft Andre Drummond

Drummond has huge potential.

He's amazingly athletic and has a great skill set to match. He can score with his back to the basket when he needs to and has pretty decent range on his jump shot for a big man who should still be in high school.

Drummond would compliment Griffin tremendously. He's a force on defense, but still isn't an elite rebounder. Griffin is the exact opposite; Blake is a great rebounder, but he can't block a shot.

They would benefit a lot from playing alongside each other. Just imagine Griffin in the high post, driving in and either throwing it down or handing it off to Drummond for the easy dunk. Even if Griffin missed a layup at the rim, Drummond's athleticism would most certainly help clean up the boards and put it back in.

This would probably become one of the greatest frontcourts of all time.

Trade for Chris Paul

This is looking more likely to happen every single day. Paul stated that he would sign an extension with the Clippers, especially if Tyson Chandler joined him on the team, which could be made to happen.

A very likely trade that might take place is Eric Bledsoe, Chris Kaman, Al Farouq Aminu and Minnesota's draft pick for Chris Paul and either Trevor Ariza or Emeka Okafor.

The Clippers would clearly be winning the trade by a landslide, as they are getting a player who is arguably the best point guard in the NBA (You won't hear that argument coming from me though, Deron Williams is my man as the top playmaker in the league).

Paul would make an unstoppable pick and roll duo with Blake Griffin and would find both Blake and Eric Gordon open for a lot of shots. If this trade goes down, don't be surprised if Gordon and Griffin's points per game averages both shoot up to 25 per night.