Major DeMar DeRozan to the Clippers Trade Idea
In a recent mailbag article, Sam Smith of NBA.com was asked about the possibility of the LA Clippers trading for DeMar DeRozan. The Chicago Bulls star is owed $28.3M for the upcoming season, but is an unrestricted free agent after that, which aligns his contract with both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George who have player options for the 2024-25 season.
In this hypothetical trade idea, the Clippers essentially send out salary fillers in Marcus Morris and Robert Covington, along with Amir Coffey and a first round pick. In return, the Clippers get DeMar DeRozan and Andre Drummond.
It's important to note that this is a hypothetical trade proposal that Smith was sent, as it's officially that time of year, but the NBA.com writer did admit the deal could be reasonable for both sides. His primary reason for believing that was Chicago's need to pile up draft choices, while not wanting to take back long-term salary (both Morris and Covington have one year left on their deals).
For the Clippers, the connection is obvious. DeRozan is from Los Angeles, although he did recently admit that playing for one of his home teams is no longer something he feels he needs to do. Being able to add a player of his caliber while only parting with players who were not firmly in the rotation seems too good to be true, but that's likely because it is.
Even with the attachment of a first-round pick, it feels reasonable to assume that the Clippers would be outbid by somebody if their package for DeRozan was simply expiring deals and one late first rounder.
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