Clippers' First-Round Pick Makes Bold Kawhi Leonard, James Harden Statement

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Yanic Konan Niederhauser shared his thoughts on teaming up with James Harden and Kawhi Leonard

Jun 25, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Yanic Konan Niederhauser walks on stage after being selected as the 30th pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Yanic Konan Niederhauser had a feeling he was going to be selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft.

The league wasn't sure enough to extend him a green-room invite, but he knew. It added to the jollity of the moment as he made the trek down from the stands at Barclays Center to shake Adam Silver's hand.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser was sitting in the stands and sprinted downstairs after he was drafted 🙏

The smile on his face as he ran down the hallway 🥹

(via @PennStateMBB) pic.twitter.com/04FnWtL1kX
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 26, 2025

I was nervous up there," Niederhauser said. "I'm like: 'I really want to be there. I really want to walk up there' ... I really got nervous."

Niederhauser went to the LA Clippers with the final pick of the first round after a productive final season with Penn State — the center averaged 12.9 points and 6.3 rebounds on 61.1 percent shooting from the field — and now joins James Harden and Kawhi Leonard in California.

The pick is in! Welcome to LA, Yanic Konan Niederhauser! pic.twitter.com/aA3pa2tPJv
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) June 26, 2025

Safe to say, he's looking forward to that pairing.

"What excites me the most is all the stuff I can learn from them," Konan Niederhauser said. "Both players are skilled offensively and also defensively. All the stuff I can learn from all the veterans there, that's what I'm looking forward to most."

But until he lands in LA? He's living in the moment.

"I just let the night go on," Konan Niederhauser said, "and now I'm a Clipper."

Konan Niederhauser played for Penn State last season after transferring from Northern Illinois and led the Big Ten in blocked shots at 2.3 per game. He'll now fight for a reserve role behind breakout star Ivica Zubac.

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