The Los Angeles Clippers and the Memphis Grizzlies delivered a weekend surprise with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reporting a shocking trade between the two teams. The Grizzlies dealt journeyman Eric Bledsoe to the LA Clippers in exchange for veteran point guards Patrick Beverley and Rajon Rondo and second-year center Daniel Oturu.
The trade benefits both parties as they continue to bolster their sides for the upcoming season. The Clippers made the tough decision to part ways with a fan favorite in Beverley to create some financial flexibility for the upcoming season.
LA Clippers saved money with the deal
With Pat Beverley, Rajon Rondo, and Daniel Oturu making a combined $24.1 million next season and Eric Bledsoe just $18.1 million for the 2021-22 campaign, the LA Clippers were able to save a whopping $30 million in the luxury tax with the deal. They also landed an $8.3 million traded-player exception that they can use within the year.
Bledsoe also will provide some much-needed offensive firepower to a Clippers team that is losing two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard for the majority, if not the entirety, of the 2021-22 season due to a knee injury. Bledsoe might not be the prolific scorer he once was, but he is still better offensively than Rondo and Beverley.
Bledsoe averaged just 12.2 points per game last season for the New Orleans Pelicans, who traded him to the Memphis Grizzlies this past offseason. The Clippers hope Bledsoe can rediscover his form during the 2015-2017 seasons when he recorded back-to-back 20 points-per-game while playing for the Phoenix Suns.
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Grizzlies might trade again Rondo and Beverley
The jury is still out on what the Grizzlies want to do with their three-player haul. According to Wojnarowski, the Grizzlies are open-minded regarding the futures of the three new arrivals, with the team open to trade deals with other interested parties.
The Grizzlies are already stacked in the guard position, with Ja Morant, Tyus Jones, Dillon Brooks, and De'Anthony Melton expected to get the bulk of the minutes in the Memphis backcourt. What made the deal enticing for Memphis were Beverley and Rondo's expiring contracts as they will be unrestricted free agents following the 2021-22 season.
That will help the Grizzlies clear up some much-needed cap space and bolster their bid to retain key player Jaren Jackson Jr. who is approaching free agency soon. The Grizzlies view Jackson as an integral part of their future, and they are expected to hand a huge extension to their star forward, with some projecting at least a $30 million per year deal.
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