The Clippers finally have a premium draft pick again, and they should not give it away.
The Los Angeles Clippers have not held a draft pick this valuable since they selected Blake Griffin first overall back in 2009.
After a 42-40 season that ended with a play-in exit against the Golden State Warriors, the franchise is sitting at a crossroads, and the temptation to trade the No. 5 pick for a quick fix has to be strong.
But based on the latest reporting from NBA insider Jake Fischer, the front office appears to be resisting that urge, and rightfully so.
Fischer's Reporting
Fischer reported on The Stein Line that "most teams picking behind the Clippers are currently operating under the assumption that LA will stand pat and keep their No. 5 overall selection."
That is a telling sign.
There is no real indication that Los Angeles holds interest in moving down the board, and rival teams seem to have gotten that message loud and clear.
Some front offices have tried hard to gauge where the Clippers stand, but so far it has not led anywhere productive.
The Clippers are locked in on making a pick.
Building Slowly
It would be easy to look at a 42-40 record and think the Clippers need a win-now piece rather than a rookie.
Kawhi Leonard averaged 27.9 points per game this past season and showed he can still perform at an elite level when healthy, but he played just 65 games and turns 35 later this month.
His future with the team remains uncertain as the league investigates his contract situation.
Meanwhile, the trade deadline acquisition of Darius Garland gave the offense a different look, and he averaged 18.8 points and 6.7 assists across 45 total games between Cleveland and Los Angeles this season.
Even with both of those guys on the roster, the Clippers still fell short of the postseason.
That alone should tell Lawrence Frank everything he needs to know about where this team is headed.
Trading the fifth pick for an established player might help next season, but it almost certainly would not push Los Angeles past teams like the Spurs, Thunder, or Nuggets in a loaded Western Conference.
The smarter play here is to take the best prospect available and start layering young talent alongside the veterans who are already in place.
This draft class has been called one of the deepest in years, and missing the top four consensus picks does not mean the talent at five is lacking.
Names like Keaton Wagler, Mikel Brown Jr., and Darius Acuff Jr. have all been linked to the Clippers, and each brings something different to the backcourt.
The Clippers spent years mortgaging the future for win-now moves that never brought a title.
Now that they finally have a premium draft asset again, giving it away for marginal short-term improvement would be repeating the same old mistakes.
Standing pat and picking a player who can grow alongside Garland is the forward-thinking move this franchise has needed for a long time.
