NBA Draft Results: Los Angeles Clippers select C.J. Wilcox 28th-overall

The Los Angeles Clippers are closing in on becoming a legitimate NBA title contender.

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After being eliminated in the first round of the 2014 NBA playoffs, the Clippers hired former Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic head coach Doc Rivers, who won a championship with the Celtics in 2008. They then shipped guard Eric Bledsoe to the Phoenix Suns in a three-way deal that netted them former Orlando Magic and Milwaukee Bucks’ guard J.J. Redick in a sign-and-trade from the Bucks. The Clippers finished with the league’s third-best record and defeated the Golden State Warriors in a hard-fought seven-game series in the first round of the playoffs before falling to the Oklahoma City Thunder in six games a round later.

With the Clippers set to pursue elite free agents like Miami Heat forward LeBron James and possibly New York Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony, many thought the Clippers would deal the 28th-overall selection in the first round of Thursday night’s draft.

Instead, they used it to select former Washington Huskies’ guard C.J. Wilcox and according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, the Clippers will not be trading Wilcox.

Wilcox measured in at 6’5 in shoes and 201 lbs. with a wingspan of 6’9.75. He averaged 18.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 45.3% from the field, 39.1% from beyond the arc and 87.3% from the free throw line.

This is a pick that can clearly help the Clippers on offense, but with Jamal Crawford and J.J. Redick, among others, able to score from the guard spot, it seems like the pick could have been better used elsewhere.

Grade: C+