Clippers Have Fascinating Trade vs. Extension Decisions to Make on 3 Players

Now that the Kawhi Leonard era is officially over in LA, it's time the Clippers shift their focus to the upcoming season. The new-look Clippers begin the season without serious postseason aspirations, but they want to be as competitive as possible. For the first time under Ty Lue, however, the team's future will be more important than its present.

That is why the three decisions they have to make on three veterans will be very important for their future.

Derrick Jones Jr., Kris Dunn, and Max Strus are eligible for contract extensions. They are all entering the final year of their contracts, which gives the Clippers a fascinating dilemma. Do they extend or trade them?

What Should the Clippers Do With Dunn, Jones Jr., and Strus?

All three perimeter players are valuable contributors. They are arguably the three best defenders on the team, so the Clippers need them to have any chance of being a competent defense. But Strus is 30, Dunn is 32, and Jones will turn 30 during the season. Given where the Clippers are as a franchise, do they really want to sign players in their 30s to multi-year deals?

This is a tricky question to answer for multiple reasons. Dunn and Jones Jr. are on favorable, team-friendly deals. The former makes $5.6 million, and the latter makes $10.4 million. These contracts make salary-matching in trades very easy. Plus, any playoff team would want to have defense-first players of that caliber, so there will be suitors willing to give up decent draft compensation.

Strus makes $16.6 million. This is a harder contract to trade given the time he missed last season. But the Clippers could add more years to this contract via an extension and make Strus more tradable.

That is the fascinating aspect of this dilemma. Does adding more years to these three veterans' contracts make them more tradable?

There are arguments for both sides. Some teams may prefer the flexibility of acquiring Jones Jr. on an expiring contract. Some might prefer to know how much they will be paying him in the following seasons so that they don't overpay for him in the trade.

For the Clippers, there is a clear risk associated by giving contract extensions to these veterans. LA is asset-poor after the league took away five of their future first-round picks. They can't afford to have negative-value contracts on their books.

Instead, they need to be in the business of turning their positive-value contracts into draft picks. That is why exploring trades for Jones Jr. and Dunn now may be the right move. For Strus, waiting until the deadline so that he can recoup some of his trade value may make more sense.

This will undoubtedly hurt the Clippers in the 2026-27 season. Their defense will get much worse if they move on from Dunn and Jones Jr., but they have no choice but to prioritize their future and acquire more draft capital. Extending these veterans may hinder their ability to do so.

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