Our 2022-2023 player season preview series continues with the steady long-time starter at center, Ivica Zubac.
BASIC INFORMATION
Height: 7’0”
Weight: 240
Position: Center
Age: 25
Years in NBA: 6
Key Stats: 76 games, 10.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 blocks, on 62.6/0.0/72.7 shooting splits
Contract Status: Ivica Zubac is in the first year of a three-year, $33 million contract.
EXPECTATIONS
Despite being just 25 years old and only six years into his NBA career, it feels like Ivica Zubac has reached his ceiling. At least, he has for this championship-contending Clippers team — and that is perfectly okay. For three full seasons, Zu has been a pillar of health, an anchor in the middle to some very good defenses, and a low-maintenance, reliable starting center. One could make the case that Zu should be playing more than the 24.4 minutes per game (career high) that he played last season, or that he could benefit from showcasing a little bit more on offense outside of the paint. However, the reality is that those opportunities have been few and far between and probably aren’t ever going to present themselves on the Clips.
A reasonable expectation for Ivica Zubac in the 2022-23 season is for him to basically be a clone of who he was a season ago. It’s hard to know exactly how much he’ll play given that there are a ton of guys who’ll need their share of minutes, but Zu is the only true center on the team. His number might be called upon more often than we think.
STRENGTHS
In the 10-or-so years that the Clippers have become contenders, health (particularly to their star players) has held them back. Fortunately for them, they haven’t had to worry about the center spot —. Deandre Jordan was an ironman in the Lob City era and Zu has been that in the 213 era.
Whether or not you consider availability to be a skill is one thing, but there’s no debating that it can be viewed as a strength. For Zu, it surely is. He’s played in at least 70 regular-season games in each of the past three seasons, which has allowed him to accumulate enough reps to form an identity as a player. That identity includes creating extra possessions for the Clippers’ offense by being tireless on the offensive glass and being an impactful interior defender — two additional strengths of his.
He’ll continue, this season, to lean heavily into his strengths while having the lack of ego to not to step outside of his role.
WEAKNESSES
If there’s an area Zu could be better that could actually show up in games (not 3-point shooting), it’s probably his passing. To be fair, it’s not really a weakness. However, it’s been really easy to spot the differences between his passing and the vision and playmaking of recent backup centers like Isaiah Hartenstein, Demarcus Cousins, and even Joakim Noah for that brief time he was a Clipper. He won’t ever be the Marc Gasol kind of playmaker that many tried to speak into existence a couple of years back, but a few more strides in that area could be helpful.
And if we’re still nitpicking, Zu also did shoot his lowest percentage from the free-throw line in the 2021-22 season (72.7%) since his rookie year. It may or may not be a big deal to some, but hanging out in near 70 percent feels quite different than being near the 80s, where he’s been from time to time throughout his career. Zu doesn’t always close games anyways, so it’s not like the number will impact his ability to close games as it did for Deandre during the hack-a-DJ days, but it would be nice to have a little more confidence in Zu to knock down a pair when he steps to the line.
SUMMARY
Some want more from the starting center spot, which is understandable. And there are some perfectly fine with what Zu brings to the table — also understandable. However you feel about it, the fact of the matter is that T Lue loves himself some small ball, and Zu’s perfectly good 24 minutes per game allows the staff to get creative with how the Clippers choose to operate on a nightly basis. I think this will be another great year for arguably one of the more underappreciated starting centers in the NBA.
