The OKC Thunder played a major role in leading the Clippers to their current disheveled state as an organization.
From nabbing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander back via their 2019 blockbuster Paul George trade exchange to stealing a boatload of draft picks over the years, without Oklahoma City's help, the Kawhi Leonard-era and, now, its aftereffects out in Los Angeles may not have gone down as it did.
Ironically, Oklahoma City may also be seen as having the solution for them to climb out of their unenviable hole.
During a recent episode of the Third Apron podcast, CBS Sports' Sam Quinn discussed the ways in which LA could be looking to build their way back to a place of relevancy in the post-Leonard era that has them down a multitude of future draft picks as a result of being found guilty of illegal cap circumvention.
Though he admitted that finding the right path forward may be "tricky," Quinn firmly believes the Clippers "more than any [team]" should be prioritizing their free agency tactics, specifically noting that they should be hoping for a "Jalen Brunson type of situation," where an underrated player on another squad hits the open market and is given the keys to blossom elsewhere.
The name that Quinn said comes to his mind: Ajay Mitchell.
Rising Thunder star Ajay Mitchell floated as possible Clippers target
This isn't the first time Mitchell has been floated as someone who could eventually follow in the footsteps of Brunson and leap into legitimate NBA stardom if he were to ever land with another team.
The Ringer's Bill Simmons has gone as far as to say Mitchell's style of play reminds him an awful lot of the Knicks megastar during his early days as a backup with the Mavericks.
Frankly, their ability to raise their levels of play in the postseason is also quite comparable, particularly this past year when Mitchell found himself dropping a whopping 18.4 points, 4.7 assists, and 3.9 rebounds on 46.7 percent shooting from deep while boasting la eague-high plus-14.6 plus-minus through seven starts during the Thunder's 2026 playoff run.
Of course, considering his continually improving production, how young he still is at only 24, and, frankly, the lessons learned from Dallas' past mistakes, it's hard to believe Sam Presti and company would allow the combo guard to leave their roster -- at least, not without getting a substantial haul in return.
So while Mitchell may be seen as an ideal future free agent target for the hapless Clippers, the franchise should by no means be banking on having the same luck the Knicks did back in the summer of 2022 with Brunson.
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