The Los Angeles Clippers have reached an agreement with forward Josh Smith. The terms of this deal have yet to be disclosed. This signing solidifies the Clippers as contenders next season.

News of the signing first broke when Shams Charania of RealGM took to Twitter.

Free agent Josh Smith has reached agreement with the Los Angeles Clippers, league sources tell RealGM.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 16, 2015

Smith was also being strongly pursued by the Sacramento Kings. With Smith now in the fold, the Clippers have a very formidable frontcourt.

The Detroit Pistons tried to experiment with Smith, but things did not work out too well, so they traded him to the Houston Rockets. Smith turned things around in Houston and was a key piece in its run to the Western Conference Finals. In 55 games with the Rockets, he averaged 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 blocks per game.

Smith particularly elevated his game in the playoffs, where he saw a spike in points, field goal percentage and three-point shooting percentage. Games 1 and 4 of the conference finals proved that Smith can still play at a high level. In Game 4, he scored 20 points, to go along with six rebounds, five assists and two blocks. Smith also went 3-for-4 from deep.

The Clippers were already having quite the summer, but signing Smith makes it that much better. They still don’t have a solid backup center, but Smith does add more depth to the Clippers’ frontcourt, which includes Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Paul Pierce.

Los Angeles has made a point to sure up its defense, which was a major reason the Rockets were able to reel off three straight wins in the conference semis. Smith, Jordan and Lance Stephenson are all premier defenders in the league.

If the Clippers weren’t contenders before, they certainly are now. If this doesn’t work out, I guess there’s no hope for Los Angeles after all.

Brandon Austin is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @BMoreThanGreat, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.