The LA Clippers are expected to trade for a playmaking guard this offseason, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
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00:00The LA Clippers were embarrassed in the second round of the NBA playoffs,
00:03losing in seven games to the Denver Nuggets for taking a 3-1 lead in Game 4.
00:06Plenty of weaknesses are made apparent in this series, and according to the Athletic's Shams
00:10Charania, the franchise won't be shy about addressing them. The one such area for improvement,
00:15according to Charania, is in the backcourt. Rival teams expect the Clippers to trade for
00:18a playmaking guard to take some load off of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George this offseason,
00:22and while Charania doesn't know whether this player could be a starter or a reserve,
00:26it makes the most sense for LA to bolster the starting lineup.
00:29So who could be on the table of the eyeing? The Clippers don't have much trade capital in terms
00:33of future draft selections this offseason, but there are several guards on the roster with very
00:37tradable contracts. Patrick Beverly will make roughly $14 million over the next two seasons,
00:43Luke Williams entering the final year of his deal worth $8 million, and Landry Shannon has
00:48shown plenty of potential and has a team-friendly contract. Now, decimating the depth isn't the
00:53answer either, so it's unlikely LA would move all three of Beverly, Williams, and Shamit,
00:57at least not in the same deal. If Clippers do want to swing for the fences, there are top-tier
01:01point guards out there. Drew Holliday is one of the best two-way playmakers in the league,
01:05and the Pelicans can be motivated to move him this offseason. That said, finding a way to match his
01:09salary could prove to be too difficult to manage. And if LA is keen on keeping Beverly, a more
01:14offensive point guard could be acquired if Clippers win the part with Williams and or Shamit.
01:18Jalen Brunson could fill that role off the bench for a low cost, and the Brooklyn Nets could also
01:22move Spencer Dinwiddie with a healthy Kyrie Irving coming back next season. Now, ultimately,
01:27LA may have to get craftier partways with some fan favorites to make such a move happen,
01:31but as the franchise enters what could be its final season with both Leonard and George on the
01:35roster, it can't afford to be passive this offseason.