Los Angeles Clippers: 5 takeaways from 2017-18 Media Day
5. Liggins trade
While the most notable news from Media Day for the Los Angeles Clippers came from the players who were in attendance, there was one notable absence from the day’s events.
DeAndre Liggins, one of the pieces the team acquired in the Chris Paul trade, was not with the team for Media Day. His absence was to be expected, however, as he had been traded the night before:
Can confirm that #Clippers have traded DeAndre Liggins to Atlanta. Clippers get a $1.67 million trade exception, per source.
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) September 25, 2017
While this move does not seem like a big deal on the surface, it has important future implications. The trade exception generated by this move could potentially help the team to acquire a contributor sometime this season.
However, the team will probably not use the trade exception. The more important part of the deal, per reports, is that the move leaves the Clippers just shy of the luxury tax. Ducking the tax this year would allow the team to avoid hitting the dreaded repeater tax for being above the line for four out of five years.
The DeAndre Liggins move might not be a big deal now. However, it could have a huge impact on Steve Ballmer’s willingness to shell out more money in free agency in the years to come.