Nicolas Batum officially re-signs with Clippers

Just hours before it was announced that Kawhi Leonard had officially inked a 4-year extension with the LA Clippers, the team was able to re-sign Nicolas Batum as well. Batum, who is still in France, signed his contract during a livestream on the LA Clippers Instagram account, and was understandably excited to make it official.

Batum is coming off of a silver medal run at the Tokyo Olympics, a tournament he performed very well in. After rejuvenating his career with the Clippers during the 2020-21 season, Batum is likely to have a very prominent role on the team next season.

In 67 games for the Clippers last season, Batum averaged 8.1 PPG while shooting 40.4% from deep. His ability to switch defensively and make the right plays offensively, helped him take home the 3rd best plus/minus rating on the Clippers last season, right behind Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

The Clippers have officially completed their off-season plan of retaining all of their own free agents, in an attempt to run it back once fully healthy. Re-signing Batum was certainly be a priority for the Clippers, as he became not only one of their most reliable players on the court, but a positive impact in the locker room as well.

Minus Kawhi Leonard, who will be recovering from ACL surgery, the Clippers will enter the 2021-22 NBA season with their entire roster intact that helped lead them to their first Western Conference Finals appearance in franchise history.