Following the Kawhi Leonard trade, the Los Angeles Clippers have a brand new look that will be better going forward. They traded their superstar back to the Toronto Raptors in return for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first-round picks, one pick swap, and two second-round picks.
What Is The Los Angeles Clippers’ New Look?
Los Angeles is pivoting to more of a youth movement and fading away from a win-now, veteran roster. At the trade deadline last year, the Clippers traded James Harden in favor of the younger Darius Garland in a rare player-for-player swap. That was the first step of the reload.
One day after the Garland-Harden trade, Los Angeles shipped off its starting center, Ivica Zubac, for a package that included the fifth pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. They also received younger rotational players, Bennedict Mathurin and Isaiah Jackson, a 2029 first-round pick, and a 2028 second-round pick.
The Leonard trade gives the Clippers a new identity. The oldest team over the past three seasons now has only two players in their 30s: Kris Dunn (32) and Brook Lopez (38). Garland and Ingram will become the new faces of the franchise, with rookie Keaton Wagler having the potential to grow into that role.
Ingram played one season for the Raptors, leading the team in scoring with 21.2 points per game. It was his seventh consecutive season averaging at least 20 points. In 19 games for Los Angeles, Garland averaged just under 20 points and over six assists.
Why Is This Better?
The Clippers haven’t gotten past the first round of the playoffs in six years. Whether it was Leonard, Harden, Paul George, Chris Paul, or Russell Westbrook, the strategy of acquiring older veterans to try and make a playoff push wasn’t working. Last year’s team wasn’t even good enough to make it out of the play-in. This trade allows Los Angeles to reset and reload.
The Western Conference is as dominant as ever, and the Clippers haven’t been able to keep up with the better teams recently. With a youth movement, they’ll be able to develop and build a better culture, and it all starts with Wagler.
The Illinois product was the fifth pick in the 2026 draft, and deservedly so. He’s a pure scorer who can shoot from anywhere. The 2026 Big Ten Freshman of the Year averaged nearly 18 points per game, with five rebounds and four assists. He led the Fighting Illini to the Final Four, where they eventually lost to UConn.
Wagler is abundantly talented and can carry the torch of a young Los Angeles team that needs a closer when the game is on the line. Ingram and Garland will be expected to be those guys early on, but Wagler is the future. Fellow rookies Baba Miller and Henri Veesar were both mocked in the first round by experts, so they have the talent and potential to make an impact. Miller was drafted with the 36th pick, while Veesar was taken at 52.
Dick will also be a big part of the team’s future. The former Kansas Jayhawk was picked 13th in the 2023 NBA Draft by Toronto, but hasn’t lived up to the hype. He was supposed to be a shooter, but Dick shot below 35% from three-point range during his three-year career. At his best, he’s a dangerous shooter, with extraordinary athleticism, and good size on the wing at 6-foot-7. This change was needed to revive his career.
The Clippers now have a clear direction. The middle-of-the-pack regular seasons that consistently resulted in disappointment needed to change. It will take time and patience, but the youth movement in Los Angeles will improve the franchise in the long run.
