NBA Rumors: Clippers Could Make ‘Interesting’ Trade Offer For Andre Drummond, ‘Bleacher Report’ Recommends
Amid rumors that the Detroit Pistons are considering trading center Andre Drummond, a recent report suggested a number of potential suitors for the two-time All-Star, including the Los Angeles Clippers.
On Friday, Bleacher Report‘s Andy Bailey listed five potential landing spots for the 26-year-old Drummond, who could enter free agency this summer if he decides to opt out of the final year of his contract. While the list included previously rumored teams such as the Atlanta Hawks and Dallas Mavericks, a few surprising entries were also mentioned. This includes the Clippers, who made several big moves in the 2019 offseason, such as the acquisition of free agent Kawhi Leonard and the trade for former Oklahoma City Thunder star Paul George.
According to Bailey, the Clippers could theoretically make an “interesting” offer to the Pistons, despite the fact they gave up several assets — including multiple first-round selections — when they landed George last summer. This trade package, as pointed out, would include starting center Ivica Zubac, reserves Maurice Harkless, Jerome Robinson, and Mfiondu Kabengele, and a future second-round draft pick, thus giving Detroit a young and promising collection of talents that could potentially help the Pistons (12-23, 11th in Eastern Conference) as they kick off their rebuilding project.
“Ivica Zubac is just 22 years old and posting stellar pace- and playing time-adjusted numbers,” Bailey explained. “Jerome Robinson and Mfiondu Kabengele are essentially still question marks. Maurice Harkless would be mostly salary-matching fodder.”
Trade talks for Andre Drummond are heating up. @WojESPN reports Atlanta is in the mix, but should they be? What about Boston? pic.twitter.com/ddNqazNYnc
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) January 3, 2020
As for the Clippers, landing Drummond would give the team a “devastating” playoff rotation, one where he could start at center alongside forwards George and Leonard, and guards Patrick Beverley and Landry Shamet, with big man Montrezl Harrell and three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner Lou Williams leading the reserve corps. While Bailey noted that the team might not have enough bench depth if the hypothetical deal pushes forward, he stressed that the aforementioned seven players are the “most important pieces” of the Clippers’ quest to win their first-ever league championship.
Although Drummond’s arrival in Los Angeles might give the third-seeded Clippers (25-11) a better shot at representing the Western Conference in this year’s NBA Finals, there seems to be a better chance at the moment that he may end up on another struggling team if he gets moved before the February trade deadline. As reported by ESPN on Friday, the Hawks (7-28) are hoping to land Drummond for a package that would include several players on expiring contracts, as well as the 2020 first-round draft pick they previously acquired from the Brooklyn Nets.
