NBA Free Agency 2019: Shaun Livingston Calls Clippers “Ideal Fit”

Shaun Livingston was once the future of Clippers basketball. After an ugly injury in 2007 derailed his career, Shaun went elsewhere, eventually finding a home in Golden State, where he’s spent the past five seasons, and where he won three championships. Now, however, he wants to complete his career arc. Per his interview with the Peoria Journal Star, Shaun views the Clippers as the “ideal fit”, and “part of coming full circle”. It would indeed be wonderful to bring Shaun back to the Clippers for one final season — fans would love it, and he would get a chance (hopefully) to add yet another ring to his collection. All that remains is for a deal to get struck. Shaun says there’s been “some interest” on the Clippers’ end, but they don’t seem to be in any rush.

Shaun is now nearly 34 years old, and that knee injury he sustained over 12 years ago is now hastening his aging on the court. His stats have slid the past couple seasons, as more and more he’s been forced into taking midrange jumpers, having lost the speed to get around defenders. His height makes those shots acceptable ones for him, but they’re still not the most efficient looks, and unfortunately, Shaun never developed a three-point shot.

He said in the article that he’s fine with playing “spot minutes”, and that’s probably the role he’d serve on the Clippers. While the Clips do have a need for a backup point guard, Lou Williams can run the offense for the bench unit, especially if Doc Rivers does some staggering with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. Shaun would be useful in case of injury, and is still capable of playing 10-12 minutes if needed. His defense, too, has suffered a bit in recent years, but he’s still a large guard who knows where to be on the court and does his best. There’s value to that.

If the Clippers really loved Shaun’s fit on this team, they probably would have signed him already. However, he wants to be on the Clips, he doesn’t appear to have much of a market in free agency, and he does at least kind of fill a need on the roster. I think there are probably better NBA players still available, but Shaun would not be a bad choice, and it would make an already magical summer even sweeter for fans.