With the conclusion of this year’s NBA draft, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank turned his attention to securing future Hall of Famer James Harden for the foreseeable future.
The 16-year veteran point guard can opt in to the final year of his contract for $36.3 million or opt out and seek a new longer-term deal or test free agency. The two sides formally opened talks after the NBA Finals.
“He’s our No. 1 priority,” Frank said. “We are super hopeful that James is here and he’s here for a long time. Yet, at the same time, we always respect that he has a player option. He can opt in and obviously we’re super, super excited with that (possibility), or he can opt out and hopefully we can do a deal that makes sense for both sides.
“James was phenomenal (last season) and we hope to continue to see his play.”
Harden, who will turn 36 in August, signed a two-year, $70 million deal last summer that included the player option then produced one of his most productive seasons in recent years. He carried the Clippers through the first 47 games of the regular season while star forward Kawhi Leonard rehabbed from a knee injury, and he finished with averages of 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 8.7 assists, earning All-NBA third-team honors and his 11th All-Star Game nod.
But he had a limited impact in two games during the Clippers’ seven-game loss to the Denver Nuggets in a first-round playoff series.
“I think he was really, really disappointed just because his expectations, just like all ours, were very, very high,” Frank said. “Unfortunately, we fell short.”
The Clippers wrapped up the draft on Thursday night by landing Nevada’s Kobe Sanders with the 50th overall pick in the second round.
The Clippers traded with the New York Knicks to move up one spot and received Sanders, a 6-foot-8 swingman, whom the Knicks had initially selected. The Clippers then selected 6-8 French forward Mohamed Diawara at No. 51 and traded him to the Knicks.
Sanders possesses guard skills and a defensive mindset, qualities that caught scouts’ attention at the NBA draft combine.
He played four seasons at Cal Poly before transferring to Nevada, where he averaged 15.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game, while shooting 46% from the field and 34.2% from 3-point range in a hybrid role. Scouting reports indicate he passes the ball well and that his pull-up jumper has a chance to translate well to the NBA.
“Kobe is a playmaking wing who is a skilled passer and an effective scorer,” Frank said. “He grew up in San Diego and we’re excited to bring him back to Southern California.”
The Clippers came into this year’s draft targeting a playmaker, someone who can shoot and get teammates open shots and learn under Harden. Sanders could be that player.
However, with a veteran-heavy roster, Sanders and Penn State center Yanic Konan Niederhauser, who the Clippers picked in the first round, need to earn their spots in the rotation. But unlike previous seasons, the newcomers could see more opportunities on the NBA level. Most young players spend a portion of the season in the G League, where they tend to get more playing time.
“We’re going to make some tweaks in how we go through with our younger players next year,” Frank said. “We’re also probably going to make some tweaks in having our guys spending more time with the team here (rather than in G League).”
“We don’t give them anything and there’s always a lot of competition because we were super fortunate to have several good players.”