CLIPPERS STEAL DERRICK JONES JR. FOR $30 MILLION AFTER MAVERICKS EXIT

Top-end talents are now moving all around the league for NBA Free Agency. A lot of teams are awaiting some members of squads that have reached the last series of the postseason such that they can impart that knowledge to other squads. The latest person to join that trend is Derrick Jones Jr. Who are the biggest beneficiaries of Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavericks running mate and this move? It is the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Clippers have signed Derick Jones Jr. to a three-year deal, per Shams Charania of The Athletic. Reports have stated that the contract is worth $30 million. Those numbers were certainly big enough for him to sign with them and leave the Luka Doncic-led Mavericks in NBA Free Agency.

There was a lot of uncertainty about Jones Jr.’s future with the Mavericks after they lost the NBA Finals in five games to the Boston Celtics. Obviously, the high-flyer has been a focal point of Jason Kidd’s schemes. He was one of the best vertical threats in the league and pairing him up with Luka Doncic was just a match made in heaven. Surely, the Mavericks are going to need to fill the void that he leaves behind after this NBA Free Agency move.

Jones Jr. played 76 games for the Mavericks before moving on to the Clippers. On an average of 23.5 minutes a game, he was able to produce big numbers. He knocked down 48.3% of shots from all three levels of scoring for 8.6 points per game.

His all-around style of play also netted him 3.3 rebounds a night. Moreover, he also records 0.7 blocks and 0.7 steals for the Mavericks. Having him in the Clippers system would allow guys like James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, and Russell Westbrook to have a new lob threat.

Derrick Jones Jr.’s fit with the Clippers

 

As of the moment, the Clippers do not have many veteran talents who can still jump out of the gym when it comes to the small forward and power forward positions. With Paul George leaving and Kawhi Leonard often needing time to recover due to injuries, that rotation just got way thinner. They will be left with Norman Powell, Amir Coffey, Kobe Brown, and PJ Tucker.

Jones Jr. gives them that exact need entering next season. The 27-year-old still has a lot of hops and it meshes well with James Harden’s playstyle. Similar to Doncic, The Beard likes his lob threats and will be getting one for the foreseeable future. It is a convenient way to bail out broken plays because Jones Jr. knows how to cut properly to the rim and make the proper read before using his insane verticality.

There will be a lot of schematic changes in the Clippers system and this move signals that.

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The post Clippers steal Derrick Jones Jr. for $30 million after Mavericks exit appeared first on ClutchPoints.

2024-07-01T05:18:40Z dg43tfdfdgfd