It is not too often, even lately, that the Los Angeles Clippers get the last laugh over their in-city rival Lakers. And in the case of the Ivica Zubac trade, the Clippers front office and Jerry West reportedly actually laughed.
In a piece from ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, he reports that Clippers consultant Jerry West and his friends (who were all out to dinner) laughed at the Lakers expense over the acquisition of Zubac. MeMenamin also reports that the Clippers did not even approach the Lakers about Zubac and that was actually the other way around. The full anecdote via McMenamin:
Shortly after the trade deadline, Clippers consultant Jerry West — who spent more than 40 years with the Lakers as a player, coach and executive — got together for dinner with old friends who also had former Laker ties, sources said. He couldn’t believe how Zubac fell into his lap. The Clippers, sources said, never even called the Lakers to inquire about Zubac. The Lakers made the offer and the Clippers gladly accepted.
The full trade was Michael Beasley and Ivica Zubac for Mike Muscala, with Zubac essentially being an enticing prospect to get Beasley off the books. The two-for-one swap left a roster spot open for the Lakers, who were going after another player to make a postseason push. Names that are mentioned in McMenamin’s article that the Lakers planned to pursue include sharpshooter Wayne Ellington and centers DeAndre Jordan and Enes Kanter. None of those moves ever happened, with Kanter going to the Trail Blazers and Ellington to the Pistons.
Zubac played a meaningful role on the Lakers, who dealt with several injuries to their big men throughout the season. In those games, the 7″1′ center averaged 17.7 points and 8.7 rebounds and showed promise of at least a serviceable big man. In 20 games with the Clippers, Zubac is averaging nine points per game to go with 7.8 rebounds.
