Los Angeles Clippers: Patrick Beverley is bound to be traded after draft
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Clippers selected two guards in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft. Now, Patrick Beverley looks like the odd man out.
The Los Angeles Clippers did not take a center in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft as we expected here at LA Sports Hub. Instead, the Clippers went with two guards in the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jerome Robinson.
The Clippers had to trade two future second-round picks to move up one spot for the draft rights for Gilgeous-Alexander while the team simply used the 13th overall pick on Robinson.
Gilgeous-Alexander is a dynamic point guard that is now set up to be the future centerpiece of the franchise. Robinson is a great off-ball and on-ball scorer that was one of the closest players to their ceiling in the draft.
Los Angeles went with potential by selecting Gilgeous-Alexander, as he may blossom into something special. With Robinson, they went with a guy that will be a role player right away with a lesser ceiling to try to combat the rebuilding phase.
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By selecting two guards, though, the Los Angeles Clippers now have a surplus for next season. Avery Bradley is the only guard heading to free agency. Patrick Beverley, Jawun Evans, Lou Williams, Sindarius Thornwell and C.J. Williams are all under contract next season.
Austin Rivers and Milos Teodosic may also be on the roster as they both own player options. Rivers seems unlikely to walk because of his father, Doc Rivers, being the head coach. Teodosic could potentially walk away, but has more to prove in his second year in the NBA before hitting the market.
Regardless if both opt-in or just one does, the Los Angeles Clippers have a major surplus at guard. The Clippers obviously did this with intent, which leads us to think that the team may be preparing to move one of the guards.
The first trade target is obviously Patrick Beverley. Beverley is only under contract for one more season and missed most of last year due to injury. His salary is relatively small ($5 million) and his defensive presence makes him a huge depth piece for a contending team.
Potential teams that the Clippers should consider trading Beverley to are the Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves or the Indiana Pacers. All three teams are contenders and could use some defense.
The ideal trade return for Beverley would have been a selection in this year’s draft or a young center to take over after DeAndre Jordan. However, that is going to be a tough price to ask for one year of Beverley.
An interesting scenario to watch would be packaging either Jordan or Tobias Harris with Beverley to assume a contract from another team and get some draft picks in the process. Teams looking to add star power and free up long-term contracts would benefit from acquiring Beverley and either Jordan or Harris.
While it is doubtful this specific deal would happen, something along these lines would be Beverley and Harris for Carmelo Anthony and a future first-round pick. While the Clippers would be taking in a lot of salary, the team would be helping the future with a draft pick, or maybe even two.
Next: What the Clippers should have done at 13
Regardless, the possibilities are endless for a Patrick Beverley trade. When it is all said and done though, it is safe to say that Beverley may be on his way out from the Los Angeles Clippers.