{"id":712605,"date":"2026-04-17T17:57:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T17:57:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/712605\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T17:57:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T17:57:35","slug":"john-collins-sends-a-message-to-clippers-about-looming-free-agency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/712605\/","title":{"rendered":"John Collins Sends a Message to Clippers About Looming Free Agency"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Los Angeles Clippers have two free agents heading into the offseason: Bennedict Mathurin and John Collins. How willing the Clippers are to retain both players and how much they want to pay them will determine the rest of their offseason course. The Clippers have cap space<\/a>, but if they give lucrative, long-term deals to both players, they may not have enough to upgrade the roster to a contender level. <\/p>\n

That is why it will be fascinating to watch how the Clippers deal with these negotiations. Collins, for his part, made his preference known after Wednesday night’s elimination to the Warriors. <\/p>\n

Collins said that his first year with the Clippers was “solid” even though both he and the team had a lot they “had to deal with,” and added that “hopefully [he] can come back and make this a longer-term thing,” per team reporter Justin Russo<\/a>. <\/p>\n

John Collins, on unrestricted free agency and if he\u2019d like to return: \u201cI\u2019d love to just extend it and continue to grow those relationships. But I just understand the other side of the business. But again, enjoyed my time here, enjoyed the basketball here…\u201d pic.twitter.com\/EfMbVT7zRY<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) April 17, 2026<\/a>John Collins Wants to Stay With the Clippers Despite Looming Free Agency<\/p>\n

The veteran power forward continued, “I\u2019d love to just extend it and continue to grow those relationships. But I just understand the other side of the business. But again, enjoyed my time here, enjoyed the basketball here.” <\/p>\n

Collins’ desire to stay with the Clippers is understandable. He was a starter for most of the year, and as the only true power forward on the team, he had a clear path to significant playing time night in and night out. His usage rate was lower than it was earlier in his career, but he was on a much more competitive team compared to his previous two seasons in Utah. <\/p>\n

The Clippers should have an interest in retaining Collins as well. They clearly like the 28-year-old power forward as they traded Norman Powell for him last offseason. Plus, they don’t have a great way of replacing him internally. <\/p>\n

This will obviously depend on Collins’ price tag. As a player who has made over $125 million in his career, Collins may have other priorities in his next contract. His next contract is not going to be anywhere near the $26.5 million salary he was on in 2025-26, but Collins will still be worth around the non-taxpayer midlevel exception ($15 million for next season). <\/p>\n

However, it’s not like the Clippers can’t give him what he is looking for financially. LA will have at least $39 million in cap space heading into the offseason, and can open up even more by not exercising the team options on Bogdan Bogdanovic and Brook Lopez. It’s hard to imagine Collins finding a better on-court and financial fit than the Clippers. <\/p>\n

Stars are certainly aligning for Collins to return to the Clippers for another season, but how much they want to invest in him will be determined by how the rest of their offseason shakes out. <\/p>\n

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