Baron Davis Says Clippers Face Years-Long Rebuild After Draft-Pick Forfeiture

The Los Angeles Clippers are facing a difficult stretch after the NBA ruled the team circumvented salary cap rules in its dealings involving Kawhi Leonard. The league’s punishment strips the Clippers of five first-round draft picks from 2029 through 2033, and owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended from team activities for a year.

Losing that many first-round picks is a significant blow for a franchise already in transition. The Clippers missed the playoffs last season and traded away Leonard, their best player, leaving the team with fewer avenues to rebuild through the draft at a time when, as former Clipper Baron Davis points out, most franchise-changing talent comes from the first 30 picks.

Davis, who played for the Clippers earlier in his career, said the organization now faces a long road that will test its ability to develop talent outside the usual channels.

“I think for the Clippers, the next five years are going to be super important around how they stay competitive, how they develop the young guys that they can get. And then it’s really going to be a big burden placed on free agency and then also scouting, right? Where can you find a gem that you can’t find in the draft? Where can you take a chance on someone who may not have performed as a high pick three years later and bring them in and develop them?” Davis told Fox News in a recent interview.

Davis added that the team’s lack of draft capital puts it at a disadvantage compared to franchises that have landed star prospects through high picks.

“So, it does put you somewhere behind the eight ball when it comes to getting better through the draft, finding that [Victor Wembanyama], AJ Dybantsa, [Kevin Durant], right? LeBron [James], like getting those picks. And so, what the Clippers must do is figure out which direction – and I think over the next two years, we’ll start seeing which direction they want to go, as far as do they want to get young and take chances, or are they good enough now to really just rely on free agency to put them back into playoff contention?” Davis said.

Given the uncertainty surrounding the franchise, Davis suggested fans might find themselves betting against the Clippers in coming seasons as a way to stay engaged with the team. Davis has recently partnered with Fanatics, whose sportsbook offers a Fair Play pledge for injury protection along with $1 million in FanCash.

“For a lot of fans who feel like they have a certain expertise or a certain feeling about a player or a team, now you can actually place your bet, right, and place your wager and be a part of a jackpot or be a part of a transactional bet that rewards you for your expertise,” Davis said. “We live in a time now where basketball — sports in general, but specifically basketball — is on a global stage, and that means so many people have access to our game and are watching our game. And so it gives the fans an opportunity to really just gamify their participation while watching as well.”

Davis also reflected on the energy of this past summer’s championship celebrations in New York, when the Knicks brought home their first title since 1973. Davis, who briefly played for the Knicks during the “Linsanity” era alongside Jeremy Lin, said he recognized the potential for that kind of citywide moment.

“I knew what the Knicks brand was about because I was next to Jeremy Lin during Linsanity, and so that was really a snapshot of what could potentially happen,” Davis said. “When you look at New York, it’s an international market, right? There’s a diverse community of people that are well represented, and culture is well represented and respected in New York. And so when you get a run like that in a city like that, it unites people from all walks of life, and it just shows you the power of sports and what sports can do for a city.”