With Zubac and Harden now gone, what does the future hold for the Clippers?
The Los Angeles Clippers were one of the hottest teams in the NBA heading into the trade deadline, and nobody could have expected what came next.
After going on a 16-3 run that pulled them from the bottom of the Western Conference all the way into play-in position, the front office decided to blow it all up.
In the span of just a few days, the Clippers moved James Harden and Ivica Zubac, turning what looked like a late-season push into a full rebuild on the fly.
It was a shocking pivot for a team that had just won 16 of 19 games.
Los Angeles now sits at 23-27 on the season and heads into All-Star Weekend as the host team at Intuit Dome with far more questions than answers.
Harden and Zubac Out the Door
The Harden trade came first, with the Clippers sending the 11-time All-Star to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Darius Garland and a 2026 second-round pick.
Harden was averaging 25.4 points and 8.1 assists this season and had been a huge part of the team's hot stretch, but the front office did not want to commit long-term money to a player who turns 37 in August.
Garland is 10 years younger and gives the Clippers a proven guard who should be a core piece for years to come.
Then came the bigger surprise at the buzzer.
The Clippers shipped their longest-tenured player in Zubac, along with Kobe Brown, to the Indiana Pacers for Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, two first-round picks and a second-round pick.
Zubac was putting up 14.4 points and 11.0 rebounds on 61 percent shooting and was coming off a career year in 2024-25 that earned him All-Defensive Second Team honors, so letting him go during a playoff push was not something anyone saw coming.
Young Talent and Draft Capital Coming In
The return from these deals gives the Clippers exactly what they needed to get younger.
Mathurin is just 23 years old and was averaging 17.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game with Indiana this season, and he brings scoring punch on the wing that Los Angeles has been missing.
He is a restricted free agent this summer, so the Clippers can match any offer and keep him around.
The draft capital matters too.
The Pacers' 2026 first-round pick is protected 1-4 and 10-30, and with Indiana sitting at 13-38 there is close to a coin-flip chance it lands in the 5-9 range of what many consider a loaded draft class.
If it does not land there, it turns into an unprotected 2031 first-rounder.
The Clippers also picked up the Pacers' unprotected 2029 first, giving them real assets to either use or trade down the line.
Could Kawhi Be Next?
With Harden and Zubac both gone, the biggest question is what happens with Kawhi Leonard.
The two-time Finals MVP is still playing at an elite level, averaging 27.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game and earning an All-Star nod for the game at Intuit Dome next weekend.
But he will be entering the final year of his contract next season at $50.3 million, and while the Clippers are not moving him right now, the offseason could be a different story.
Leonard kept things professional after the trades, saying he trusts the front office and that Harden will always be his guy.
It is a far cry from just a few weeks ago when the two stars combined for 67 points in a win over the Hornets and it looked like the Clippers were ready to make a real run.
Whether Leonard stays or goes this summer will determine what the next chapter looks like in Los Angeles.