Clippers Exercising Niederhauser’s Third-Year Option

Niederhauser’s third-year option on his rookie scale contract is worth just over $3MM. That ’27/28 cap hit will now be fully guaranteed.

The 30th overall pick in the 2025 draft out of Penn State, Niederhauser didn’t play much as a rookie last season. Before undergoing season-ending surgery in March to address a Lisfranc injury in his right foot, he averaged 4.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 10.3 minutes per game across 41 appearances off the bench.

However, the 6’11” center had become part of L.A.’s regular rotation immediately prior to suffering the injury, as the deadline deal sending Ivica Zubac to Indiana opened up more consistent playing time for him. Niederhauser logged double-digit minutes in each of his last nine healthy games of the season in February and March, averaging 7.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in 16.6 MPG during that stretch.

After undergoing a follow-up procedure on his foot in July, Niederhauser has yet to make his season debut this fall, but the Clippers’ decision to pick up his option signals that he remains part of the team’s plans going forward.

As our tracker shows, Niederhauser is the only player on L.A.’s roster with a rookie scale team option for 2027/28.