NBA Rumors: OKC Thunder Could Send Steven Adams To Clippers For Harrell, Zubac & Shamet, Per ‘Bleacher Report’

The Los Angeles Clippers may currently be the heavy favorite to fully dominate the Western Conference and bring home the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the 2019-20 NBA season, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they will stop trying to upgrade their roster. Despite having one of the deepest benches in the league, the Clippers still have some issues to address on their team, including their need for a starting-caliber center. To solve their frontcourt problem, one of the players who the Clippers could target this summer is Steven Adams of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

In a recent article, Bleacher Report NBA staff came up with several trade ideas to get stars their new sidekicks. For Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Bleacher Report‘s Will Gottlieb suggested the Clippers could try bringing Adams to Los Angeles in the 2020 offseason. In the proposed trade deal, the Clippers would be acquiring Adams from the Thunder in exchange for a trade package that includes Montrezl Harrell, Ivica Zubac, and Landry Shamet.

If the trade becomes a reality, it would benefit both the Clippers and the Thunder. Adams may not be a legitimate superstar, but Gottlieb believed his arrival in Los Angeles would enable the team to have a better matchup against other Western Conference powerhouses who have dominant big men, like the Los Angeles Lakers, the Denver Nuggets, and the Utah Jazz.

“If there’s one area where the Los Angeles Clippers could stand to upgrade, it’s with the man in the middle. To compete with teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz who still use their size to overwhelm opponents, the Clippers need a big body like Steven Adams. The Kiwi is already familiar playing next to Paul George and would provide a massive pick-and-roll screener for Kawhi Leonard. His defensive rebounding and soft touch at the rim would shore up any weaknesses the Clippers might have against rival West contenders.”

Though he hasn’t shown any strong indication that he wants out of Oklahoma City, most NBA fans would definitely prefer to see Adams play for a legitimate title contender than waste his talent on a rebuilding team like the Thunder. Joining forces with Leonard and George in the offseason would give Adams a realistic chance of winning his first title.

In exchange for Adams, the Thunder would be acquiring two young and promising talents in Zubac and Shamet who could be part of their long-term future. Like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Zubac and Shamet could be essential members of the next title-contending team that the Thunder would try to build in the post-Russell Westbrook era.