INGLEWOOD — The Clippers have officially announced who's suiting up for them in Las Vegas. Monday, they followed up with who's staying in LA for the long haul too.
Let's start with Summer League. The Clippers open at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday, July 9 (8 p.m. PT, ESPN), then face the Utah Jazz on Sunday, July 12 (7 p.m., Prime Video). Tuesday, July 14 brings the one circled on every LA calendar, a Battle for LA rematch against the Lakers (7 p.m., Prime Video), before Washington closes out the group stage Wednesday, July 15 (7:30 p.m., ESPN). A fifth game is still to be determined based on how the group stage shakes out.
The name carrying the most weight into Vegas is Keaton Wagler, the No. 5 overall pick out of Illinois and the highest draft selection the Clippers have walked into a Summer League with in years. This is his first real look in front of NBA eyes with actual expectations attached, and how he handles the ball-handling reps against grown NBA competition will tell us more about the pick than any pre-draft scouting report did. Nick Martinelli, the Northwestern wing the Clippers acquired from Houston on draft night for the No. 55 pick, made it official on Monday too, signing a two-way contract that fills the team's second two-way slot alongside Sean Pedulla. Martinelli, the 6-foot-7 forward averaged 20-plus points in each of his last two college seasons and grabbed 6.2 rebounds a night over that span.
Kobe Sanders isn't just a Summer League name either. The Clippers already locked him into a four-year, $11.2 million deal, a real payday for a guy they took with the No. 50 pick a year ago. Sanders averaged 7.3 points on 46.6 percent shooting and a sharp 40.8 percent from three over 68 games as a rookie, including 16 starts, and Vegas is his chance to show that wasn't a fluke before real minutes are on the line again this fall. Baba Miller, the No. 36 pick out of Cincinnati, remains unsigned for now, and Cam Christie and Sean Medulla round out a roster built less for a Vegas championship and more for finding out which of these names are still around come October.
© Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Nov 25, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) is defended by Los Angeles Clippers guard Kobe Sanders (4) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Not long after the summer league squad was made official, the actual headline of the day landed. Rui Hachimura agreed to a two-year, $28 million deal with the Clippers, per ESPN's Shams Charania, ending his three and a half season run with the crosstown Lakers. The Lakers and Clippers reportedly kicked around a sign and trade first, but it fell apart. The Lakers wanted draft compensation back, the Clippers weren't offering more than cash, and Hachimura wasn't in a mood to wait, turning down interest from Minnesota, Golden State, Brooklyn and San Antonio to stay in the city he's called home the past three years. He posted a short goodbye to Lakers Nation on his Instagram story, thanking the fanbase for "the memories we made together" before crossing town for good.
The timing matters here. Hachimura is walking into a Clippers frontcourt that just lost both Kawhi Leonard and John Collins this offseason, and he's projected to step directly into the starting lineup at forward. He shot a career best 44.3 percent from three last season and was even sharper in the playoffs, hitting 50.7 percent from three-point land across 36 postseason games with the Lakers. That's an immediate, plug in ready skill for a Clippers team rebuilding around whatever's left after shipping Kawhi back to Toronto.
So the Clippers spent one Monday morning doing two very different kinds of roster building: locking in the kids they hope turn into something in Las Vegas, and adding a proven veteran who can play real minutes the moment training camp opens. Vegas will tell you about the future. Hachimura is here for right now.