The next player up in the Where Are They Now Series is Jawun Evans, Sindarius Thornwell’s draft mate all the way back in 2017.

Clippers Career

Jawun Evans was taken with the 39^th pick in the 2017 Draft, marking the first draft selection of the post Lob City era. Evans was well liked by draft pundits as a pick, and Clippers fans had moderate expectations for Jawun due to a strong two-year college career. Evans played in 48 games his rookie season, averaging 16.2 minutes per contest for a competitive Clippers’ squad. However, despite flashing some fun playmaking and pesky point-of-attack defense, Evans’ offensive game, which was terrific in college, did not translate, with Jawun shooting just 35.2% from the field and 27.8% from three. It was overall a disappointing season, albeit with a few real highlights.

Unfortunately, like several of the Clippers’ young players from the 2016-2018 seasons, Jawun became a casualty of the Clippers’ influx of young talent with two lottery picks in the 2018 draft, and was waived on October 15, 2018 in training camp.

2019 Season

Jawun was picked up by the Phoenix Suns on a two-way deal just a couple weeks later, in early November, and remained with the Suns’ organization for most of the 2019 season. However, he played in a mere 7 games for the big league squad, averaging just over nine minutes per game and playing exclusively in garbage time. Instead, Jawun played mostly in the G-League, appearing in 32 games for the North Arizona Suns and averaging 15 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. Unfortunately, his turnovers were high (3.2) and the three-point shooting remained below average (33.8% on 2.3 attempts).

Evans was waived by the Suns on March 23, and was picked up by the Thunder on March 25. He played in just one game for the Thunder, logging a single minute with one stat (a missed three) before the season ended. Overall, not a banner year for Jawun, and this would be the last season he made appearances in NBA games.

2020 Season

Jawun was picked up by the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G-League team, and spent the season with them. He started in 16 of 33 games, but his scoring dropped all the way down to 7.6 per game, a nearly 50% reduction. Jawun’s turnovers also fell nearly in half, to 1.8, with a clear emphasis on running an offense and making plays for others rather than scoring. Sadly, what was probably Jawun’s steadiest year as a pro so far ended in early March, as he was waived following a season-ending injury.

2021 Season

It took Jawun nearly a full year to find a new professional home, as he signed with Promitheas Patras of the Greek Basket League in January of 2021. Evans played in just eight games for Patras and averaged a mere 15.2 minutes per game, with averages of 6.8 points and 2.0 assists not much to write home about. It was a brief sojourn internationally for Jawun, who then returned to North America at the end of the year.

2022 Season

Jawun signed with the Raptors 905 again, but was traded to the Canton Charge (Cleveland’s G-League team) before playing a game. He then appeared in 20 games for Canton, averaging 7.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.9 assists on his best shooting splits yet (43.2% from field and 43.3% from three). Still, at this point Jawun seemed locked into bench roles at the G-League level, or similar international arenas.

2023 Season

In September 2022, Jawun went back overseas, signing with Juventus Utena, a Lithuanian basketball team. Here, Jawun probably had his best overall professional campaign, averaging 14.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists while shooting 46.2% from the field, 40.5% from three, and 88.9% from the line. Oddly, Jawun played in just 14 games for Juventus before leaving, and didn’t sign anywhere else during the 2023 season after departing in January.

2024 Season

In July 2023, Jawun signed with Slask Wroclaw in Poland, but once again only appeared in a few games for the Polish side before signing with JDA Dijon Basket in the French LNB A. Jawun played in just a couple of games for Dijon as well, with very poor stats, logging just 10 total games across both leagues in the entire 2024 calendar year. Again, I’m not sure why he played in so few games, whether because of injuries, personality issues, or something else entirely.

2025 Season

In August of 2024, Jawun went back to Poland, this time signing with Legia Warsaw. Jawun played 13 games for Legia, but his stats were poor, scoring 7.9 points on 37.1% shooting from the field and 28.2% from three. Jawun left Legia, and in January of 2025 went back to the G-League, signing with the Maine Celtics. Jawun logged just four games with Maine, and his stats there were even worse than in Poland (albeit in a tiny sample size), shooting just 2-11 across those appearances and missing his only two threes. And that takes us to the present day.

Future

Jawun Evans has sadly had a bit of a downer career. After a somewhat fun if ultimately not very good rookie season in the NBA and then a competent (though again not awesome) G-League campaign the next year, he has really struggled to find his footing, with most of his stints with teams not lasting for more than a couple of months. Just 29 years old, Jawun could probably continue to play professionally for another few seasons, but it seems like at this point he might be even below the G-League level.

Ultimately, Jawun’s biggest issue has been scoring the basketball. It’s odd considering he was an effective and efficient scorer at good volume in a good conference in college at Oklahoma State, but his scoring has just not translated to the pros at all. More specifically, Jawun’s three-point shot has just never materialized, and it’s tough being a small guard that’s not a good three-point shooter. Hopefully Jawun can scratch out another couple of years professionally, even if that means going to some lesser-tier leagues.

Where Are They Now: Jawun Evans
Robert Flom

You know the NBA Offseason is in its dog days when I re-start the Where Are They Now articles, a very long running series dating back to Clips Nation documenting the career of former Clippers’ players. With Chris Paul returning to the Clippers, I wanted to take a look back at the days immediately after he left the team for the first time, and so I will be reviewing some of the Clippers from the fun 2017-2018 season. First up: Sindarius Thornwell.

Clippers Career

Sindarius Thornwell was taken with the 48^th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, continuing the Clippers’ tradition of taking older players in the draft (Reggie Bullock, CJ Wilcox, Brice Johnson, etc.). Expectations are always pretty low for players taken so low, but Sindarius immediately raised them through a strong Summer League. He then went on to play a real role for the 2018 Clippers, playing in 73 games (starting 16) for a team that went 42-40. A limited (to be kind) offensive player, Sindarius played minutes because of his defense and energy, which was the M.O. of that squad.

Unfortunately for Sindarius (but fortunately for the Clippers), the selection of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the 2018 Draft and the improved health of Pat Beverley (he barely played in 2017) pushed Thornwell way down the depth chart. Sindarius still played in 64 games for the incredibly fun 48-34 squad, but averaged just 4.9 minutes per game, with most of his playing time coming in garbage time or for very limited defensive situations.

Then, in the summer of 2019, the Clippers brought in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, and everything changed (Avatar the Last Airbender reference for those who know). For a team trying to compete for a championship, there was no longer room on the end of the bench for a defensive-first prospect already in his mid-20s, and so Sindarius was waived in early July.

2020 Season

Sindarius signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers to a training camp deal, but was waived before the season started. He thus spent most of his time in the G-League, logging 40 games for the Rio Grand Valley Vipers. Unfortunately, it was not a great season for Sindarius, who averaged just 9.2 points on 42.6% shooting from the field and 28.9% from deep. His inability to do much on the offensive end (though he did average 4.6 assists per game) did not bode well for his NBA prospects.

Sindarius was in fact signed at the very end of the season by the New Orleans Pelicans in a COVID-season only “substitution deal” but played just two inconsequential games for them.

2021 Season

The Pelicans must have liked what they saw from Sindarius, however, because they re-signed him in December of 2020 before the start of the season (that season started just before Christmas). The Pelicans waived him before the trade deadline before re-signing him to multiple 10-day deals. In total, Sindarius played 14 games for the Pels, averaging just 1.2 points in 5.2 minutes per game as a primarily defensive-oriented player.

When Sindarius’ second 10-day deal expired, the Orlando Magic stepped in and signed him to a two-way deal. Sindarius actually got more playing time than he had in years, averaging 20.6 minutes per game in his seven appearances for Orlando. Sadly, he was dreadful on offense, shooting 32% from the field and 28.6% from three.

Sindarius’ lack of offense game was his downfall, and those games for the Magic were the last time he appeared in the NBA.

2022 Season

After sticking in the NBA for parts of four seasons (legitimately a nice career for the 48^th pick), Sindarius finally went overseas, signing with German side Ratiopharm Ulm for the 2022 season. Ulm has been one of the better teams in the German League (BBL) in recent years, and competed in Eurocup that season. Across 42 games played, Sindarius started 39 and averaged 29.9 minutes per game, playing a key role. He also shot well for the first time in his professional career, averaging 44.4% from the field, 39% from three (on 3.9 attempts!), and 81.8% from the line (3.7 attempts) and scoring 12.5 points per game. A much-needed bounce back season for Sindarius.

2023 Season

Sindarius parlayed his excellent 2022 campaign into a deal with Frutti Extra Bursapor of the Turkish Basketball League (BSL), one of the best domestic leagues outside of the US. Oddly, Thornwell played just four games for Bursapor, and then did not play at all the rest of the year. I’m not sure what happened here, whether it was an injury, suspension, personal reasons, or something else, but it was a lost season for Sindarius.

2024 Season

The next time Sindarius played basketball it was for Avtodor Saratov of the Russian Basketball League (VTB). He suited up for 39 games, starting 34, and had a similar (if somewhat worse) season to his 2022 campaign for Ulm. Sindarius shot pretty well, collected a good number of rebounds, and scoring in the low double-digits. At this point, this seems like what Sindarius is at this level

2025 Season

In August 2024, Sindarius signed with Zastal Zielona Gora of the Polish Basketball League. He played and started in 17 games for Zastal before leaving the team in February 2025 and moving to the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Like so many former NBA players, China beckoned. Sindarius played 12 games for the Flying Tigers, but started just three, and played in fewer minutes per game than he had since leaving the NBA.

Future

Now 30 years old (turning 31 in November), Sindarius Thornwell seems well past the point of an NBA return. He’s clearly playing at a level where he can continue finding jobs overseas, but at this point I’d also imagine he’s not close to returning to a true top-level league (Euroleague) or team. Ultimately, while Sindarius’ defense at his size made him a useful bit player in the NBA, his lack of development as an offensive player has held him back from a steady tenure with any team. Hopefully he can keep playing another few years and reach the decade mark of his professional career.

Where Are They Now: Sindarius Thornwell
Robert Flom

The Where Are They Now series is back for another look at an unheralded Clippers player of yore, this time forward Branden Dawson.

Clippers Tenure

In many ways, Branden Dawson was an unfortunate failure of the Clippers’ lack of player development under their previous regime (and NBA rules before two-way contract). Traded for by the Clippers with cash considerations in 2015 as the 56^th pick in the draft, Dawson spent most of his first professional season adrift. The Clippers didn’t have their own D-League team, so Dawson spent time on no less than three affiliates: the Bakersfield Jam, Grand Rapids Drive, and Erie Bayhawks (two of which have moved and all three of which have changed names since). On the rare occasions Dawson was with the Clippers, he rode the bench, appearing in just six games, all garbage time.  After just a year, Dawson was waived, despite his lack of playing time and second cheap contract year. It’s hard not to think he never even had much of a chance.

2016 – 2017

Dawson signed with the Orlando Magic to a training camp deal in September, but was waived after two preseason games. He then was signed by the Magic’s affiliate, the Bayhawks. Dawson had a decent season for the Bayhawks, appearing in 33 games (starting 13) and averaging 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game. As always with Dawson, the rebounding and defensive stats were there in a big way, but the offense (medium scoring on pitiful 50.3% TS) was not. The Bayhawks waived Dawson at the end of March – a decent D-League player, Dawson, already 24, did not appear close to NBA ready.

Within two days, Dawson had signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv of the Israeli Premier League, the top league in Israel and one of the better domestic leagues outside of the US. Dawson closed the season with Hapoel, appearing in eight contests and averaging 8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Unfortunately, his efficiency remained poor, with a field goal% of 48.2 but only 45% from the line and 12.5% from three, all on very limited attempts.

2017 – 2018

In August, Dawson signed with the Hitachi Sun Rockers Shibuya of the Japanese B. League. However, he only played in 10 games for them, averaging a mere 6.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks across 12.2 minutes. On a per-minute basis those stats are actually pretty good, but there must have been a reason Dawson didn’t play more. Whether he left because of lack of playing time, personal reasons, or injury does not seem clear, but whatever it was, this season of basketball was sparse and not particularly successful.

2018 – 2019

The 2019 season was Branden Dawson’s most prolific to date. He got a late start of it, only signing in December to Soles des Mexicali in the LNBP, the top division of Mexican basketball. He started 19 of the 21 games he played in, and averaged a robust 14.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.6 blocks. At some point, however, he moved to another team, Gigantes del Jalisco, and played another 21 games with them, helping them to the second spot in their division. Dawson’s numbers were a tick under where they were for Soles, but that was due to his playing fewer minutes per game. After the Mexicn season was over, not done, Branden signed to Mauricio Baez of the TBS League in the Dominican Republic. He played four games for Baez, and averaged a staggering 13.8 points, 15.5 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game at a clearly lower level of play. Still, overall, it was a successful season for Branden.

2019 – 2020

Unfortunately, 2019 got off to a bad start when Dawson wasn’t eligible to play for the Philippines-based Alaska Aces, due to, incredibly, his being over 6’5, which is the limit for foreign players in that league.

Dawson didn’t sign anywhere for quite a while afterwards, receiving an offer only in late November, and as a two-month injury replacement for an American player, Jakim Donaldson, for Bnei Herzliya of the Israeli National League, the second tier in Israel. Dawson played in a mere two games for them before getting waived. This was the only team he’d play for in the 2020 season. This year is particularly interesting since it was coming off perhaps his best year as a pro in Mexico – maybe there were bad personality reports, or some sort of injury scared teams off. Regardless, a tough blow for Branden after a good year prior.

2020 – 2021

Dawson’s rough 2020, or maybe the factors that led to it, caused him to have just as poor a start to his 2021 campaign. He signed in November to Kaohsiung Jeoutai Technology of the Taiwan Super Basketball League. If you’ve never heard of it, there’s a good reason why, as it was a semi-professional league. In 2021, the league split, with some teams joining the new professional T1 League. At that point, Dawson was signed to the Hsinchu JKO Lioneers of the P+ League in Taiwan, with whom he finished the season.

2021 – 2022

The Lioneers brought Branden Dawson back for the 2022 season, but whether due to COVID, other factors, or just league size (there are only six teams), Dawson played in a mere seven games. He averaged 14.4 points and 8.7 rebounds – good numbers, to be sure, but not a ton considering the level at which he was playing at. Dawson, always a defense-first player, never seems to have developed his offensive game enough to be the kind of American player who dominates overseas.

Future

At 29 years old and playing in well below top-tier international leagues, Dawson’s chances at returning to the NBA are probably about zero. The Clippers never gave him much a shot, but his career since suggests he’s not an NBA player, or probably even close. Still, he’s been able to find a home most years (though it doesn’t seem as if he’s signed anywhere yet), and that counts for something. As he ages into his 30s, those spots might run out, but until then, Branden Dawson will presumably keep chugging along.

Where Are They Now: Branden Dawson
Robert Flom

The “Where Are They Now” offseason series on Clippers of yore returns with a look at big man Angel Delgado.

Clippers Career

Angel Delgado went unselected in the 2018 NBA Draft, but shortly after the draft was signed to a two-way contract by the Clippers. Compared to other two-way signees such as CJ Williams, Ty Wallace, or Amir Coffey, Delgado saw very little in the way of NBA playing time, appearing in just two games, both garbage time exclusives, and scoring just three points in his 15 total minutes. Delgado was, however, a significant force for the Agua Caliente Clippers, where he took a starring role. Angel averaged 18.5 points, an incredible 14.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game in 33.4 minutes across 44 contests while scoring at a highly efficient clip. He also pulled in 31 rebounds in a single game, setting a still-standing record. The result of all this was the G-League Rookie of the Year Award and placement on the 1^st Team All G-League, a prestigious honor for a 24-year-old rookie.

2019 – 2020

Despite his G-League success, the Clippers did not bring Angel back on a two-way deal. Instead, he went to China, specifically the Beijing Flying Tigers in the top Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) League. However, Delgado never appeared in a game in China, and signed with Hapoel Holon in December 2019. Angel played in 10 games for Hapoel, averaging 8.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game while shooting 53.7% from the field and 50% from the line. Despite the solid-ish numbers in a decent league, apparently there were some issues, as Delgado left the team in early January due to personal reasons. He was claimed by the Sioux Falls Skyforce in March 2020, and returned to the G-League to play a couple games before the season ended. Overall, a tumultuous season for Angel after the highs of the previous year.

2020 – 2021

In July 2020, Delgado signed with Movistar Estudiante of the Liga ACB, widely regarded as the top domestic league in the world outside of the NBA. While not a EuroLeague level squad like Real Madrid or Barcelona, Estudiante is a long-running ACB club that has a rivalry with Real due to its location in Madrid. Angel did well, starting in 21 of 34 games and averaging 8.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game while shooting 65.4% from the field. Unfortunately, the team struggled, going 9-27 and getting relegated to the second division Spanish LEB Gold at the end of the year.

2021 – 2022

In July 2021, Delgado signed with Bilbao Basket, also of the Liga ACB (and currently home to such recognizable names as Andrew Goudelock and Jeff Withey). He played even better than he had the year before, starting in 31 of 34 games (playing all contests for two years in a row) and averaging 11.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists while shooting 64.9% from the field. Bilbao went 16-18, strong enough to gain a qualification in the Basketball Champions League, a FIBA-organized European-wide basketball competition below EuroLeague and Eurocup.

Future

Despite his success in the last two years in Spain, Angel has moved on, signing with Karsiyaka Basket of the Turkish Basketball Super League, another top-tier European domestic league. With Karsiyaka, Angel will team with Errick McCollum, CJ’s older brother and a renowned international player.

Nearly 28, and with a plodding, traditional big-man style game that doesn’t fit much with the modern NBA, Angel Delgado seems unlikely to make an NBA comeback. A legitimately dominant rebounder and solid paint scorer overseas, Delgado offers no offensive spacing, isn’t quick enough to defend on the perimeter, and isn’t a great rim protector. Still, those issues matter less outside the NBA, and Angel is good enough to have a nice if not glamorous career on high-level (though not quite top-tier) foreign clubs for the rest of his playing prime.

Where Are They Now: Angel Delgado
Robert Flom