The Clippers know what they want to do at center: Ivica Zubac will start games and Montrezl Harrell will come off the bench behind him and be a force of nature.
With those two, the Clippers need guys at the four who can space the floor. JaMychal Green will start at the four and provide that spacing, with Moe Harkless can fill some of that role as well.
Veteran stretch four Patrick Patterson agreed to a buyout with the Thunder a couple of weeks ago to clear out his path to the Clippers. Now that deal is done, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Free agent forward Patrick Patterson has agreed to a one-year, $2.3 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 15, 2019
That is a veteran minimum contract, as expected.
Cap hit on the Patterson signing in LAC is $1.6M. Roster is now at 14 (not including Exhibit 10 and Two-Way contracts). https://t.co/4slz8RmYC8
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) August 15, 2019
Paterson played a limited role for Oklahoma City off the bench last season as he continues to try and get right following knee surgery a couple of years ago. He played in 63 games and averaged 3.6 points per game when he got on the court. That said, he’s a solid veteran presence and he can shoot the three still, hitting 33.6 percent from deep last season.
The signing is a bit interesting because the Clippers could use a third center off the bench (Patterson played 13 percent of his minutes last season there but he’s not a five) and another, more traditional backup point guard (to play behind Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams). That said, Patterson is one of the better veterans still available and the Clippers want the floor spacing at the four.