NBA Rumors: 5 free agency destinations for Luol Deng
By John Buhler
77. . West. Pacific. Los Angeles Clippers. 2. player
While we’ll have to wait and see how the Jeff Green situation at the three shakes out with the Los Angeles Clippers for the rest of the season, with the roster Los Angeles has one through five, they’re really only one strong small forward away from contending for an NBA Championship.
Los Angeles’ window of opportunity to win it all is beginning to close and it would be foolish for head coach/general manager Doc Rivers to not ferocious attack his starting small forward position in 2016 NBA free agency. While he does have two great players in J.J. Redick at the two and Jamal Crawford as his sixth man, Rivers needs a better three than what he’s had the last few years if the Clippers want to contend for an NBA title.
While Deng isn’t an All-Star anymore, he’ll probably bring a veteran presence and a sense of professionalism to that position that has evade Clippers’ threes for some time. He’d be the perfect complimentary fifth starter on a strong Clippers roster that features Chris Paul at point guard, Redick at shooting guard, Blake Griffin at power forward, and DeAndre Jordan at center.
Deng shouldn’t be the Clippers first or even their second choice to upgrade the starting small forward position, but if the Clippers are willing to overpay for Deng, he’d fit in well with what the Clippers are trying to do in the Western Conference for the next few years. Small forward wouldn’t be a massive liability anymore for the Clippers if they were to sign a healthy Deng to a deal this summer in NBA free agency.
Next: 1. Miami Heat