A massive trade proposal has the Los Angeles Clippers adding another All-Star to complement the dynamic duo of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.
The Clippers signed Leonard and acquired George via trade four summers ago, hoping the two future Hall of Famers would lift the franchise to its first championship. But the Clippers have won just three total playoff series’ in the George-Leonard era, and they failed to win a single series in each of the last two years.
It’s clear that the Clippers need a third All-Star to get over the hump in the stacked Western Conference. Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale proposed a blockbuster move that would help the Clippers accomplish that.
Favale proposed a trade in which the Clippers land six-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan from the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Robert Covington, Norman Powell, Amir Coffey and a 2028 first-round pick (top-four protected):
“We’ve spent the better part of two years wringing our hands over the Clippers’ lack of a backcourt playmaker. They’ve long needed one of those to ease the shot-creation load on Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. But who says that job has to go to a conventional point guard?
DeRozan has averaged over 5.0 assists per game in five of his last six seasons (a streak interrupted by a 4.9-per-game figure in 2021-22), and his ability to pull in help defenders as he gets into his mid-range bag serves the same purpose as a standard pick-and-roll point guard. DeRozan would get highly exploitable matchups with teams using their toughest defenders on George and Leonard, and he could easily operate as a facilitator or overpowering on-on-one scorer.
Either way, the Clips get a ton of offensive creation.”
The Clippers were eliminated by the Devin Booker and Kevin Durant-led Phoenix Suns in the opening round of the 2023 playoffs. Durability has been an issue for both George and Leonard, as neither player has even played 60 games in a single season for the Clippers up to this point.
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Adding a consistent scorer like DeRozan would go a long way in maximizing the Clippers’ championship hopes. Whether or not the Bulls are willing to trade one of their two stars, however, remains to be seen.
