LA Clippers agree to 2-year deals with Reggie Jackson, Justise Winslow

ByOhm Youngmisuk ESPN logo
Friday, August 6, 2021

Reggie Jackson is staying with the team that he said helped save his career by agreeing to a two-year, $22 million deal with the LA Clippers, CAA Basketball agents Aaron Mintz and Erika Ruiz told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

The free-agent point guard will be returning for the maximum the Clippers can pay Jackson under the CBA rules.

Jackson revived his career this past season, stepping up offensively and hitting clutch shots to help the Clippers reach their first-ever Western Conference finals. After averaging 10.7 points and shooting 43.3% from 3-point range in the regular season, the 10-year veteran emerged as one of the Clippers' playoff stars.

The Clippers hope to have the same effect on Justise Winslow, who agreed to a two-year deal with the team, agents Austin Brown and Ruiz of CAA told Wojnarowski.

Winslow played in a total of just 26 games last season for theMemphis Grizzliesand has played in a combined total of 37 games over the past two seasons due to injuries that included a season-ending hip injury he suffered during the NBA restart in the bubble in Orlando last year.

Winslow, 25, is two seasons removed from averaging a career-high 12.6 points while playing in 66 games for the Miami Heat in 2018-19.

If healthy, 6-foot-6 Winslow could help LA try to fill the massive void left at forward by Kawhi Leonard's ACL injury. Leonard has decided to return and is working on contract terms with the Clippers, sources confirmed to ESPN. Leonard, whose decision to return on Friday was first reported by Yahoo Sports, likely will miss significant time after undergoing surgery to repair a partially torn right ACL suffered during a second-round playoff series win over Utah.

While Leonardwent out for the Clippers' final eight playoff games with a partially torn ACL, Jackson helped Paul George shoulder the offensive load, averaging 17.8 points and shooting 40.8% from 3-point range in the postseason.

In the West semifinals, Jackson scored 22 points to help the Clippers steal Game 5 in Utah before helping eliminate the Jazz in Game 6 with 27 points and 10 assists.

The point guard became a fan favorite, hearing chants of his name while averaging 20.3 points in the Western Conference finals.

Many expected Jackson's playoff performance to raise his market value entering free agency. But Jackson acknowledged how much he loved playing for the Clippers when their season came to an end. In a teary-eyed and emotional postgame news conference after Game 6 against the Phoenix Suns, Jackson thanked the Clippers and his teammates for helping him revive his career.

Jackson couldn't hide his happiness playing alongside his best friend, George.

"First thing I told these guys was thank you for saving me," Jackson said. "Yeah, I appreciate every guy in that locker room, I appreciate Paul for getting on that phone last year, at the end the season [when I] was talking buyout with Detroit. I'm thankful for everything I've experienced being here, this city making me feel at home. This organization welcoming me, my quirks, my strengths, my weaknesses, I wonder if I would still be playing without this team. So, yeah, I thank them."

Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said after last week's NBA draft that the team hopes to keep Jackson, Leonard, Nicolas Batum and Serge Ibaka. Batum agreed to return on a two-year deal, and Ibaka opted into the second year of his contract.

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