Clippers to sign veteran guard, former top-five pick
Kris Dunn.
The Clippers have agreed to sign free agent guard Kris Dunn, league sources tell Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report (Twitter link).
The fifth overall pick in the 2016 draft, Dunn didn’t live up to his draft billing in Minnesota or Chicago during the early years of his career, but has evolved into a solid rotation piece in recent years. He spent the past two seasons in Utah, where he provided solid, versatile defense in the Jazz’s backcourt and earned praise from head coach Will Hardy for his voice in the locker room.
In 88 total appearances (35 starts) across two seasons in Utah, Dunn averaged 7.4 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.3 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .497/.395/.741.
Dunn was frequently mentioned within the last week as a potential free agent target for the Suns, with Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports reporting (via Twitter) that the 30-year-old was atop the club’s wish list as it sought a point guard. Instead, he’ll head to one of Phoenix’s division rivals, joining a Clippers team that seems prepared to move on from backup point guard Russell Westbrook.
While the details of Dunn’s contract aren’t known, the over-the-cap Clippers are believed to be devoting most of their mid-level exception to Derrick Jones and their bi-annual exception to Nicolas Batum. Unless Los Angeles plans to negotiate a sign-and-trade deal for one or more of its free-agent additions, that would leave either the leftover portion of the MLE or a minimum-salary contract for Dunn.
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