Clippers to Sign Jalen Pickett to Two-Way Deal

The Clippers keep coming up with moves even as the NBA calendar has shifted firmly into its dead zone, with Mike Scotto of Hoops Hype breaking the news today that the Clippers will sign point guard Jalen Pickett to a two-way deal. Nobody else has confirmed the signing, to my knowledge, but nobody has denied it either, and Scotto has been reliable enough that I’m assuming he is correct on this one.

Pickett was the 32nd pick in the 2023 Draft and has played the last three seasons on the Nuggets as a reserve. A 6’2, 202 pound guard, Pickett appeared in 126 games for the Nuggets across those three seasons, starting 22 (18 of those came last year). Last season saw Pickett set career highs across the board, averaging 5.2 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 16.1 minutes per game across 50 games played.

Pickett’s two biggest strengths so far in his somewhat limited NBA minutes have been his three-point shooting and his ability to limit turnovers. He’s shot 38.7% from three in his NBA career, albeit on only 253 attempts. Still, he’s been a good shooter and that seems like a real enough skill. Pickett has averaged 1.9 assists to just 0.5 turnovers, an assist to turnover ratio of almost 4:1. Again, small sample size, but notable.

Pickett is not young. A long-time college player, he turns 27 in October, putting him squarely in his prime. Thus, rather than an upside play, this is clearly a signing to add depth to the point guard position. Pickett can clearly play at least a bit at the NBA level, and the Clippers do not have a third-string point guard behind Darius Garland and Keaton Wagler. Thus, Pickett is insurance.

Scotto has not said which of the Clippers’ previous two-way players would be waived to clear room for Pickett, but my guess would be Sean Pedulla, as he projected to fill that third-string point guard slot. Pedulla is almost three years younger than Pickett, so he has more theoretical upside, but Pickett offers a much higher floor as an NBA player if called upon. Pedulla can play, but he seemed too small to really have much of an NBA career any way, so getting Pickett in that spot is a clear upgrade for me.

I don’t have much else to say about this one, but getting a guy who has played real NBA minutes for a good team and is right in his prime on a two-way deal is a nice piece of business for the Clippers.