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Clippers Trade Bones Hyland and Terance Mann for Bogdan Bogdanovic Plus Picks
The biggest Clippers’ trade of the 2025 NBA trade deadline (by far) was one they executed today about 30 minutes before the deadline, sending Terance Mann and Bones Hyland to the Atlanta Hawks for Bogdan Bogdanovic and three second-round picks.
For the Clippers, the major piece outgoing in the deal is Mann, who has been an organizational favorite and success story since his selection at 48 in the 2019 Draft. Terance was the Clippers’ lone draft hit of the entire 213 era, playing in 382 games in his 5.5 seasons on the team and starting nearly half of them (168). He quickly won fans over with his energy, hustle, and finishing abilities, and will absolutely be missed by the fanbase. Perhaps most importantly, Terance’s Game 6 performance against the Utah Jazz in the 2021 playoffs will forever be etched in Clippers’ franchise lore, a magical, special game in all of the ways sports can be so rewarding. Mann’s 39 points and incredible seven three-point makes drove the Clippers to a huge comeback win and their first-ever Conference Finals, and that can never be taken away from him or from the Clippers.
Unfortunately, Terance has never quite reached those peaks again. He’s mostly hung around the Clippers’ rotation, but was demoted in 2023 due to the arrival of Russell Westbrook, and has been on the fringes for much of this year due to an injury and the play of other wings on the roster. Terance’s three-point shooting has just never gotten good enough for him to solidify a spot as a true starting-level player, and his lack of confidence and aggression has been a similarly persistent issue. Despite the Clippers giving him a 3-year, $47M extension before this season, it was time to move on for both parties. The Clippers will get Terance’s money off their books for coming seasons, and Terance will get a new start in Atlanta. I wish it had ended differently for the second-longest tenured player on the Clippers, but Terance should be in a good spot with the Hawks.
Bones Hyland will be a much less fondly remembered Clipper. His acquisition at the trade deadline in 2023 for a couple second round picks was met with much excitement, as he was less than a year removed from being on the All-Rookie team and was brimming with potential. Unfortunately, Westbrook’s arrival that year (and the Eric Gordon acquisition) followed by Harden’s early the following season meant Bones rarely cracked the rotation. When he did, there were a few moments of brilliance (that one Bulls’ game last year lives on), but not much else. And, while the players seemed to get along with Bones, the coaching staff clearly did not trust him or feel that he was ready and prepared to be called upon when needed. The Clippers have been shopping him for months, and his inclusion in a deal at the deadline seemed a foregone conclusion.
Bogdan Bogdanovic is by far the most pedigreed of the three players, having played for Sacramento and Atlanta for 7.5 seasons. Coming over to the NBA late, Bogdanovic is already 32 years old, and has suffered a number of lower body injuries that have slowed him down. Those injuries and his subsequent downturn in play (this year has been by far the worst of Bogdans’ NBA career) are why he’s available at all after being a key piece for the Hawks. Bogdan has played in just 24 games this year, and is averaging 10 points per game on 37.1% shooting from the field and 30.1% from three in 24.9 minutes per game. For his career, those averages are 14.4, 43.5, and 38 respectively, with the three-point shooting coming on very high volume (6.5 attempts per game).
When Bogi (as he’s affectionately known) is right, he’s a dead-eye three-point shooter who can hit shots off the catch, off the dribble, and off movement. While never a great defender, he has the size at 6’5, 220 to not be a target on that end. Additionally, while not a great playmaker or lead ballhandler, Bogi is good enough at both skills to be a focal point of second unit offenses, coming in top-six in Sixth Man of the Year voting two times. In short, Bogdan is a well-rounded offensive weapon who can both be more of a leading man when hot and fade more into a role player, floor-spacing style as well when not.
The question for the Clippers is whether Bogdan has much left in the tank. The numbers this year are very, very bad, and the sample size is large enough that it’s a concern whether he’ll be able to play at his former level again (at least this season). If he can, he’s someone who will easily fit into many Clippers lineups and will effectively take the place Amir Coffey had been filling so far as the 6th man. If he’s more limited, he will probably fit in more to the KPJ role as the 8th man.
However, it seems reasonably clear the Clippers did not really do this trade for Bogdan himself. Instead, they did the deal to move off Mann’s future salary to give themselves more financial flexibility in years to come (Bogdan’s deal is slightly less money than Terance’s, and ends in 2027 instead of 2028) as well as to get a few picks back in the door. The Clippers’ pick asset chest was nearly depleted, and these picks will help with replenishing that stockpile. To be more specific, the Clippers got the 2025 Timberwolves second (likely to be in the 47-52 range), a protected 2026 Memphis pick (will go to them if it’s between 31-42), and, most importantly by far, their own 2027 second round pick. That is the crown jewel of the lot, as it both gives the Clippers a real asset of sorts and will allow them to reap at least a small benefit of being bad if they are deep in the lottery that season (high second round picks are more valuable than late firsts, usually).
There’s one other wrinkle, here, which is the obvious: the Clippers sent out two players and got back just one, clearing a roster spot. This could be used in one of two ways. First, the Clippers could sign a buyout player – think Malcolm Brogdon or Ben Simmons as the two most likely candidates. Second, if the Clippers don’t get a buyout candidate, they can convert Jordan Miller from a two-way to a full NBA contract, locking him up for years to come at a cost-controlled value.
Overall, this trade is a pretty good piece of work by the Clippers. They got off longterm money (even if it was a fan favorite player), acquired a player with some upside in Bogdanovic who is on a slightly cheaper and shorter deal, opened a roster spot, and received some draft capital. It’s not a homerun, but it is a nice, B to B+ type move (similar to the Eubanks trade) that should give short-term and long-term benefits.
Best of luck to Terance and Bones in Atlanta, and welcome Bogdan to Inglewood!
Clippers Trade Bones Hyland and Terance Mann for Bogdan Bogdanovic Plus Picks
Robert Flom