Today’s Hottest Take: Yanic is a perfect fit for the Clippers’ future

With the Clippers trading their James Harden and Ivica Zubac for young players like Benndict Mathurin and Darius Garland, they’ve signaled that they are preparing for this future. One of the areas they lacked in was center, with Brook Lopez being their best center with Zubac gone. A couple years ago this would have been fine, but nowadays Lopez is getting close to retirement. His defense and rebounding have dramatically decreased in the past couple years. At this point he really only is out there to shoot threes and stand in the paint.

Once it is Garland’s and Mathurin’s team, they will need a good center to start beside them. They might already have that center Yanic Konan Niederhauser. He was the 30th overall pick in the 2024-2025 draft and while the Clippers signed him, he didn’t do much. Most people didn’t know much about him and thought that the Clippers just punted their pick. He got DNPs for most of the first half of the season. However once Zubac got injured, he started getting actual minutes.

Yanic Konan Niederhauser has averaged 1.6 blocks since the trade deadline and has looked to be a defensive menace. The Clippers hold the 12th best defensive rating in that time. He has also proved to be a great rebounder, grabbing over five rebounds in just 16 minutes per game. Being able to be such an anchor, this young with limited playing time, holds promise to the future.

What you need to know: Yanic already is a contributor

While Yanic Konan Niederhauser certainly adds to their future, he isn’t just some potential piece sitting around doing nothing. Being able to be a defensive player like he is can help the Clippers in the present as well as the future. He was a big reason why the Clippers beat the Warriors, racking up 11 points, nine rebounds, four blocks and two steals. Being able to provide offense and defense like that allows the Clippers to be a dangerous playoff team. The duo of Lopez’s shooting and Yanic Konan Niederhauser’s defense and rebounding allows them to have a proper front court.

While Yanic Konan Niederhauser’s defense is great, his offensive game needs some work. Zubac, the Clippers’ previous top-10 center, offensive game was mostly post up work and lobs. While he was elite at this, his offense could be limiting at times. Yanic Konan Niederhauser right now looks very similar to that, but recently we have seen him start to expand his game beyond the three point line. He’s hit a three in a regular season game and he knocked some down in the Rising Stars game. He has been open to the fact that he wants to add this to his game. He already has a very fluid looking shot so being able to be a league average shooter from three is a possibility for him.

Even if he doesn’t add this to his game, he will still be able to be a good offensive player. He has great strength and a nice vertical. Pair this with his quick second jump and his surprising speed for a center and you have a Center who could bring Lob City back to L.A. Pairing him with Garland will allow him to be an elite lob threat because Garland has plenty of experience playing with bigs like Yanic Konan Niederhauser such as Jarret Allen.

Before you go: The final piece for the Clippers is ...

Once Kawhi and the veterans on the team are gone, it will be up to the youth to start winning for the Clippers. So far they have a solid lineup with Garland at the one, Kobe Sanders at the two, Mathurin at the three and Yanic at the five. With this lineup, they are only missing a power forward for the starting lineup. They have two routes to get this player. The first one is drafting him. The Clippers have Indiana’s pick but it is protected 1-4 and 10-30. This means that the Clippers need the pick to fall between 5-9. If they get this pick they will most likely draft a power forward but if it doesn’t convey then they will need to turn to free agency.

If the Clippers get the Pacers’ pick and no big names have fallen, the most likely draft pick will be Nate Ament. He is a 19-year-old six-foot-10 forward from Tennessee. He has the skill level to be a top five draft pick in a loaded class like this, but inconsistency has dropped him to the ninth or eighth pick. He started the season averaging 15 and seven but was shooting poorly. However in the previous 12 games he has been averaging 22 and seven shooting 44% from the field and 38% from three. For an elite shooter at his position, he would fit great in the Clippers’ lineup. With him and Yanic the Clippers could have five-out spacing at every position, a luxury most teams cannot afford. His main worries are his athleticism and his strength.

However if he is next to Yanic, those are two aspects of the game he won't have to worry about. They would also be a lethal defensive combo as Ynaic is a great rim protector and Nate is extremely versatile and can switch onto the perimeter.

If the Clippers don't get Indiana’s pick or they draft someone else, they will need to go to free agency. Assuming Kawhi retires once his contract expires, then they will need to get somebody by 2027-2028 season. While the Clippers could go for a bigger name player that has been facing heat from the public like Johnathan Kuminga or even Zion Williamson, this would be a rash decision.

Instead they should go for a younger up and coming player, whose team can’t afford to keep them. One option is Zion’s teammate, Herb Jones. Jones is an elite defender, who has slowly become forgotten because of recent injuries. However it wasn’t too long ago where he carried the Pelicans’ defense to the top ten. He is a great player and if the Clippers could steal him from the Pelicans in free agency, then they would have an elite defensive core. Another player is the Houston Rockets' Tari Eason. With contracts coming up for Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr. and Reed Shepard, the Rockets might not have the money for him. He is a similar player to Herb Jones, a great defender who can shoot a little. Picking him up would be securing the Clippers future.