Los Angeles Clippers: Complete 2017 offseason grades

Willie Reed Joins the Los Angeles Clippers

One of the Clippers’ biggest issues in the 2016-17 playoffs was their lack of big man depth. Other than Marreese Speights, who is closer to a 6’10” shooting guard than a true big man, the team did not have anyone besides DeAndre Jordan who could even pretend to man the middle.

The Clippers solved that problem nicely by snagging Willie Reed with a minimum contract. Reed is a good finisher around the basket who can catch lobs whenever Jordan is not in the game. More importantly, he is a great rim protector who can shore up the team’s defense when they go to the bench.

Given some of the recent overpays for bench big men (looking at you, Enes Kanter and Bismack Biyombo), Willie Reed is a steal on a minimum contract. This may have been the smallest move of the Clippers’ offseason. However, it might be the best value deal of them all (barring getting something for what could have been nothing in the Chris Paul trade).

Grade: A