LA Clippers Rumors: Josh Smith Signs With Clippers, Spurns New York Knicks, Houston Rockets

LA Clippers rumors have Josh Smith signing with the team. Smith signed with the Clippers after the New York Knicks courted him this offseason. During the upcoming NBA season, the Clippers will use him off the bench and could possibly have the best second unit in the league. According to a report from ESPN, Smith had several options in free agency, including a return to the Houston Rockets, but he decided to head to Los Angeles.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, earlier LA Clippers rumors from the offseason revealed that Paul Pierce was signing a three-year deal with the team. He took a big pay cut to add another weapon to the roster of coach Doc Rivers, possibly giving DeAndre Jordan another reason to re-sign in Los Angeles. Now Smith has joined the team, giving the Clippers a very formidable bench that could be hard for any opponent to contend with.

The exact dollars in this deal haven’t been revealed, but it is expected to be somewhere around the veteran’s minimum. The Detroit Pistons are still paying Josh Smith $14 million for the 2015-16 NBA season, deciding to release him rather than keep him on the active roster. That’s a huge benefit for Smith, who can now choose which team he plays for, but also for a Clippers team heading deep into luxury tax territory.

These LA Clippers rumors follow what seems like a strong effort from Phil Jackson and the New York Knicks to lure him there. He could have had more minutes in New York, but the better chance at a title is probably in Los Angeles. The Clippers are built to contend for a title in the 2015-16 NBA season, while the Knicks are going to be happy just to make the postseason again. It must have been an easy sell for Rivers and any players that contacted Smith about heading to Los Angeles.

This move makes a lot of sense for the Clippers, as the team is a bit short on size. After DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin, there are currently no other big men on the 15-man roster. As for the second unit, Smith will see a lot of playing time with Lance Stephenson, Jamal Crawford, and Austin Rivers if they all remain on the active roster. While the team had already looked good on paper, these LA Clippers rumors might just make the team a favorite to win an NBA title in 2016.

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