The reigning G League Defensive Player of the Year is bringing rare size to a Clippers frontcourt that suddenly needs it.
Few players in professional basketball can change a game simply by standing near the rim, and the Clippers just added one of them.
Jamarion Sharp, a 7-foot-5 center who led the G League in blocked shots last season, has agreed to a two-way contract with Los Angeles, a deal first reported Tuesday by HoopsHype's Michael Scotto through Sharp's agent Scott Nichols.
The 24-year-old becomes the second-tallest player in the NBA behind only Victor Wembanyama, and he arrives at a moment when the Clippers genuinely need bodies in the middle.
A Season That Earned Him the Call
Sharp went undrafted out of Ole Miss in 2024 and spent the past two years grinding with the Texas Legends, the Mavericks' affiliate.
The climb paid off last season, when he was named G League Defensive Player of the Year while averaging 3.8 blocks with 7.3 rebounds per game and shooting over 71 percent from the field.
He carried that form into July, averaging 7.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks in five summer league games for Toronto before the Clippers moved to sign him away.
His best game came against Denver when he stuffed the box score with eight points, ten rebounds, and three blocks.
The grades on the team's young pieces closely align with every Clippers draft pick in summer league, and Sharp now joins that developmental group with a skill none of them possess.
Why the Clippers Needed Him Now
The timing makes sense.
Second-year center Yanic Konan Niederhauser is recovering from a pair of procedures on his right foot, and reporting suggests it would be a surprise if he is ready for opening night.
Behind Brook Lopez and Isaiah Jackson, the depth chart gets thin fast on a roster that finished ninth in the Western Conference last season.
Sharp fills the team's third and final two-way slot alongside Sean Pedulla and Nick Martinelli, giving the coaching staff an emergency rim protector who will not cost a standard roster spot.
The Clippers' depth chart once the Kawhi Leonard trade becomes official shows just how much frontcourt uncertainty remains.
Rare Size With a Real Skill
Two-way centers rarely make headlines, but Sharp is a different type of flier.
He twice led all of college basketball in blocks at Western Kentucky before finishing his college career at Ole Miss, and his instincts around the rim have translated at every stop since, including a stint in Puerto Rico's top league.
His timing and enormous reach let him protect the paint without fouling, which is the skill that separates real rim protectors from players who are simply tall.
The organization has bigger questions looming, including the reported reason the Kawhi Leonard trade to the Raptors is paused, so a low-cost bet on elite size qualifies as easy business.
If Sharp blocks shots in the NBA the way he has everywhere else, this signing will age well.
