The Clippers are keeping their options open with three young pieces, extending qualifying offers to Bennedict Mathurin, Jordan Miller and Kobe Sanders, according to Law Murray of The Athletic.
That move makes all three restricted free agents, with Los Angeles now holding the right of first refusal if any outside team tries to pry them away with an offer sheet.
Mathurin is the headliner here. The 24-year-old wing was the No. 6 pick in the 2022 draft and spent his first three-and-a-half NBA seasons with the Pacers before being sent to L.A. in February as part of the Ivica Zubac trade.
In 54 games between Indiana and the Clippers, he logged a career-best 30.0 minutes per game and put up 17.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists a night. The scoring came with some efficiency issues, though: he shot 43.0% from the field and 31.5% from three, both career lows, and he finished 17-of-82 from deep as a Clipper.
Miller and Sanders are on a different track, but both earned bigger looks from the front office. Murray reported that the Clippers also gave qualifying offers to the two wings and are declining their 2026/27 team options with the plan to sign them to multiyear contracts.
Miller, the team’s second-round pick in 2023, barely saw the floor in his first two seasons before carving out a real role in 2025/26. He averaged 10.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 60 games, shooting .531/.345/.777 in 22.1 minutes per night.
He was moved from a two-way deal to a standard contract in February.
Sanders, picked 50th overall in 2025, also turned heads as a rookie. He averaged 7.3 points in 19.9 minutes per game while shooting .466/.408/.826, and like Miller he was bumped from a two-way contract to the 15-man roster in February.
A report last week had suggested the Clippers were considering renouncing multiple free agents, Mathurin included, in order to function as a cap-space team. For now, that doesn’t appear to be the direction they’re taking. Still, the team can pull back any of these qualifying offers on or before July 13 if they haven’t been accepted by then.
Mathurin’s qualifying offer is set at $8.77MM. Miller’s is projected at around $2.74MM, while Sanders’ comes in at roughly $2.39MM, with the exact numbers for those two depending on where the 2026/27 salary cap lands.
In Other News...
Clippers Just Sent A Brutal Message About Bogdan Bogdanovic
The Clippers have kept Bogdan Bogdanovic in a holding pattern for now, but the clock on his team option did not simply run out. Instead, both sides mutually pushed the deadline back, a move that buys a little more time while LA sorts through a roster picture that has changed enough to make Bogdanovics place there look increasingly uncertain. For a player who can still help a team offensively, this is less about his ability than about fit, and the Clippers seem intent on treating that as a real roster question rather than a formality.
What makes the situation worth watching is that the delay is not a pause in business, it is part of the business. The Clippers are expected to keep exploring trade possibilities, and Bogdanovics expiring deal and shooting touch make him an appealing piece for teams looking for scoring help. There will be no shortage of interest if LA moves him, and the next step in this process will say a lot about how the front office views the rest of its summer plans. [Read more 🡒]
Clippers Eye A Young Defensive Fit With One Massive Catch
The Clippers have been working the margins of their offseason financial puzzle, and one of the clearest signs came with the decision to push back Bogdan Bogdanovis player option deadline until Monday. That move opened a wider weekend window for roster maneuvering, giving the front office a little more breathing room as it looks for ways to create cap space and stay active in a market where Denver has already shown it is willing to be creative.
Peyton Watson fits the kind of young, defensive-minded swing the Clippers tend to value, but prying him loose is a different matter. Denver has signaled a strong commitment to keeping him unless an offer sheet gets into a range that changes the equation, and the Nuggets are also exploring ways to balance their own financial pressure, including possible trade packages built around Zeke Nnaji and the No. 26 pick. For the Clippers, it leaves a familiar offseason choice: keep digging for a way to get in the mix, or watch a useful target remain just out of reach. [Read more 🡒]
Clippers Linked To Intriguing Young Wing Despite One Familiar Problem
The Clippers keep showing interest in adding length and two-way upside, and Peyton Watson has emerged as one of the more intriguing young wings on their radar. A report from Jake Fischer notes that Los Angeles would have to make specific roster moves to open up the salary-cap room to chase him, but the appeal is easy to see for a team that always seems to be searching for more athleticism and defensive versatility on the wing.
Watsons breakout season gave Denver plenty of reasons to want him back, and his ability to help on both ends only adds to the market around him. The catch is the familiar one for the Clippers: even when the target makes sense, the path to getting there is rarely simple, and this one may hinge on how creative they can get before the market starts moving. [Read more 🡒]