Following signing Blake Griffin to a monster five-year deal worth $173 million, the Los Angeles Clippers are not done trying to make deals this summer. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN said on The Jump that the Clippers reportedly have an interest in signing swingmen Joe Ingles and Danilo Gallinari.
Will add either or both of these guys be enough to make the Clippers a contender next season? Honestly, it may help them get to the playoffs in the stacked Western Conference, but I don’t know if it will get them out of the first round.
Gallinari is likely to command a high price on the open market, and with Griffin’s deal on the books he may be too expensive for L.A. Ingles is someone I view as getting paid somewhere in the $60-70 million range, and very deservedly so.
Ingles is one of the unsung heroes of the Jazz because of his usefulness across numerous statistical categories. Not only was he third in three-point shooting percentage this season, but he was one of only six players to have a true shooting percentage of over .600, assist percentage of 15 or more, and steal percentage of two or more. The other five: Kawhi Leonard, Steph Curry, Seth Curry, Chris Paul, and Mike Conley.
With Redick likely leaving in free agency and Paul gone, the Clippers will definitely have to make some sort of moves – and Ingles is efficient enough to warrant a look, and Gallinari is effective enough to warrant one as well.
Gallinari averaged 18.2 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists over 63 games while shooting 38.8 percent on threes last season for Denver.
Adding Gallinari and Ingles might be the only way for L.A. to be an actual contender next year, but that’s still no guarantee. The power shift to the Western Conference has been swift and will make it all the more difficult to make it to the playoffs in the west.
