With one of their two-way openings still sitting there, the Clippers have a clear path if they want to shore up a real weakness: center depth. Trey Jemison, freshly waived by the Toronto Raptors, fits that need cleanly. And with Yanic Konan Niederhauser still recovering for the foreseeable future, the case gets even stronger.
Los Angeles can talk itself into a few different names for those two-way slots. Yuki Kawamura and Cam Christie are both in the mix to return, while Jahmyl Telfort is another familiar option after being the odd man out around this time before the 2025-26 regular season. But if the Clippers are looking at the roster as it stands right now, the more urgent move is the big man route.
The current center group is Brook Lopez, Isaiah Jackson and Yanic Konan Niderhauser, and that’s where the problem starts. Rebounding has already been a major issue, and it doesn’t help that boxing out and crashing the glass are not strengths for Lopez or Jackson.
If Niderhauser were healthy, that would change the picture. He isn’t, and that leaves Los Angeles needing another body in the middle.
Jemison brings exactly that. He’s not some mystery flyer with no NBA track record.
He logged real minutes in Memphis in 2023-24, averaging 24.9 minutes across 23 games while putting up 7.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and shooting 55.1% from the field. He also added 1.2 blocks per game, which only strengthens the appeal for a team trying to survive in the paint.
There’s also the age-and-experience blend that makes him attractive. Jemison is 26, and he’s already bounced around the league enough to qualify as a journeyman, with stops in Washington, Los Angeles with the Lakers, New Orleans, New York and Toronto.
For Tyronn Lue, that makes Jemison a useful piece rather than just another name on the fringe. If the Clippers need more force inside than Jackson or Lopez can give them, Jemison can step into that role. If not, he can wait his turn, help from the bench, or spend time with the San Diego Clippers in the G League.
In Other News...
Clippers Roster Cuts Just Clarified A Key Part Of Their Youth Plan
NBA roster trimming day arrived Oct. 14 with several teams making the kind of moves that always seem minor in the moment but often hint at how the back end of a roster is being shaped. For the Clippers, that meant parting with Cam Christie and DeAndre Williams as they worked to get under the leagues 15-man limit before the Oct. 19 deadline, joining a wave of cuts that also hit Cleveland, Denver, the Lakers and San Antonio.
Christies name stands out a bit because he already got into Clippers games last season, while Williams looks like the sort of player who could land in the organizations G League orbit and keep developing from there. For a team trying to balance immediate roster math with longer-term player development, these decisions can say as much about the youth pipeline as the depth chart itself, even if the final destination for both players is still taking shape. [Read more 🡒]
Clippers Are Making Another Camp Move That Barely Looks Real
The Clippers have added two more names to the camp ledger, signing free agents Miye Oni and Nathan Mensah to non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contracts as the roster churn continues. In a related move, Fletcher Loyer, who had also been on an Exhibit 10 deal, has been waived, another reminder that this part of the calendar is often about paperwork as much as basketball.
For Los Angeles, these moves fit the familiar pattern of bringing in players who can compete in camp, fill out practices and stay connected to the organizations G League pipeline. The real value in these signings is less about the immediate roster picture and more about keeping doors open for the San Diego Clippers down the road, where Exhibit 10 arrangements can matter once the season turns and the assignment path becomes part of the equation. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Suddenly Enter A Star Chase That Could Change Everything
The Knicks have put Karl-Anthony Towns extension talks on hold for now as they turn their attention to defending a championship and sorting through other business, including Josh Harts contract situation. Even so, the numbers behind a possible new deal have not lined up yet, and the gap has created enough uncertainty to keep rival teams watching the situation closely.
One anonymous NBA executive recently mentioned the Bulls and Clippers as potential landing spots if Towns and New York never bridge that divide. For the Clippers, it is the kind of star-chase that always matters because their roster-building window is tied so tightly to finding the right high-end fit, and any opening around a player of Towns caliber would be worth monitoring all the way through the fall. [Read more 🡒]