The Clippers may have flirted with the idea of DeMar DeRozan, but the fit was never close to clean.
Los Angeles reportedly had interest in the three-time All-Star not long ago, continuing a front-office habit of chasing cost-effective veterans late in their careers. Russell Westbrook, John Wall and Rajon Rondo all fit that mold. DeRozan, though, would have brought a different kind of headache.
According to Jake Fischer, the Sacramento Kings even floated the idea of DeRozan coming off the bench, and that was enough to make things sensitive. If the Clippers had seriously gone after him, the same issue would have followed him into their locker room. He projects best as a sixth man, but that is not a role he would have liked.
For what it’s worth, the Kings likely waived DeRozan because the two sides couldn’t agree. That’s how serious things got.
The timing also matters. The Clippers’ interest surfaced before Kawhi Leonard was dealt to the Toronto Raptors. Now, with Leonard gone, and with the front office drafting Keaton Wagler as a potential building block for the future, there is no real reason for the Clippers to chase DeRozan on the open market.
And Clippers fans, naturally, seem relieved.
Jake Fischer’s reporting points to a player whose mindset may not match what Los Angeles wants. Tyronn Lue has already shown he is willing to push veterans and young players alike, including Russell Westbrook and Bones Hyland, to the bench. If DeRozan has a problem with that, he would not be a fit.
The basketball concerns are just as obvious. DeRozan’s three-point shooting has long been his biggest weakness, and that issue would not disappear in Lue’s system. Over time, it could easily become a path to the sideline.
So while DeRozan to the Clippers might have looked like a possible veteran swing at one point, the more you dig into it, the messier it gets. On the floor, the fit is shaky. In the locker room, it sounds even worse.
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