PLAYA VISTA, CA — With the 2024 NBA Draft officially in the rearview mirror, the Los Angeles Clippers turn their attention to a number of decisions that will be made shortly, led by star forward Paul George.
The Clippers selected Cam Christie with the 46th overall pick, marking their lone move in the two-day version of the 2024 NBA Draft. The next hurdle they'll need to get over is the June 29th deadline for all options to be finalized, which includes George, Russell Westbrook, and PJ Tucker.
So let's jump right into it.
Paul George's Decision
Paul George and the LA Clippers continue to negotiate on a new deal, according to President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank. The two simply remain at a contract stalemate.
George has a $48.8 million option for the 2024-25 season. He's eligible to sign a four-year, $221 million max extension with the Clippers. Neither the dollars nor the years have been on the table and it doesn't appear the Clippers are going to budge on that as the start of free agency nears.
The Clippers offer for George remains a three-year deal worth slightly under the three-year, $149 million extension that Kawhi Leonard signed in January 2024, league sources tell ClutchPoints. Leonard took a roughly $10 million pay cut over the life of the deal and elected to sign for one fewer year at three total years after declining his option for the 2024-25 season.
George and the Clippers have maintained that they want to continue their partnership, and league sources say the Clippers legitimately believe they can put together a championship-caliber roster around George, James Harden, and Kawhi Leonard. The two sides have been able to negotiate this deal all season, and George even expressed optimism in January and February that the two sides would get an extension done.
That never got done, and in the last few weeks, it's grown increasingly likely that George will either opt into the final year of his deal in order to facilitate a trade to a team willing to offer him the four-year deal he desires or opt-out and test the free agency market. Either way, his time with the Clippers appears to be nearing an end.
“We've had ongoing conversations with Paul and Aaron Mintz, his agent,” Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank said in his post-NBA Draft media availability. “We love Paul. We very much want to retain Paul, but we also very much understand and respect the fact this is a business and players have a finite amount of time to be able to not just make the most amount of money, but to be able to pursue whatever they want.
“We hope Paul's decision is to be here. He's been awesome. He's been an All-Star three of the five years. He's one of the best two-way players in the league. He's a terrific person. He got a great family, so we hope he's here, but also respect the fact that if he chooses to opt-out, that's his choice. He's earned it and we'll see how things play out.”
Paul George averaged 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game for the Clippers this season on career-high efficiency from the field (47.1 percent), from three (41.3 percent), and from the free throw line (90.7 percent)
Frank declined to answer the direct inquiry in person, but the Clippers are believed to be trying to align Leonard, George, and Harden on three-year deals, giving them the proper flexibility to build around their stars. Leonard already signed his three-year deal. It's expected that Harden will follow suit and do the same thing. George could always turn around and agree to the deal the Clippers have on the table, but he's currently scouring the market for any team willing to give him a four-year deal.
The Philadelphia 76ers remain interested in George, but they're keeping their options open and eyeing other potential players to slide into their cap space. The Orlando Magic were another team whose name was thrown around in recent months, but that level of interest appears to have dissipated.
The Golden State Warriors are another team rumored to be interested in George, but sources say they're not exactly keen on the idea of parting ways with Jonathan Kuminga in any deal this offseason. They do have contracts like Andrew Wiggins or Chris Paul's, which would make the salary part of the trade easier, but that's not too enticing for the Clippers.
Whatever George ends up deciding to do, we'll know a lot more when he and his team decide on his player option.
James Harden's Future
James Harden and his team are faced with a potential delay due to the uncertainty behind Paul George and his current situation. The Clippers were allowed to immediately begin negotiating with Harden and his camp once the NBA Finals came to a close on June 17th.
The Paul George situation does currently stand in the way as the team's No. 1 priority.
“It's been good,” Lawrence Frank said of negotiations with Harden and his representatives. “Again, very productive with both James and [agents] Mike and Troy. We think James has been terrific for us. When we obtained him five games into the season, thought he had a terrific season. We hope he's had a great experience while he’s been here and we hope he decides to continue to be here.
“He's been great in terms of just, even the off-season coming in, working out, coming in two-a-days, getting extra work in. So we very much want James to remain a Clipper and hope he decides to do the same.”
As of Friday morning, James Harden, despite George's contractual situation taking centerstage, is expected to return to the Clippers in free agency, league sources tell ClutchPoints. George's negotiations are not expected to affect talks between Harden and the Clippers.
The 15-year NBA veteran has enjoyed his time in Southern California and is still widely expected to re-sign with the Clippers, but the team will likely need to know what happens with Paul George in order to know what kind of offer they can definitively make Harden.
Harden averaged 16.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 8.5 assists for the Clippers on 42.8 percent shooting from the field, and 38.1 percent from three.
Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook did everything the team asked him to this season and did it with the usual fire that he plays with. Westbrook re-signed with the Clippers and entered the season as their starting point guard. That quickly changed a week into the season with the arrival of Harden.
It was immediately evident that placing Harden in the corner while Westbrook was on the ball or vice versa simply wasn't a viable way to play. Placing Westbrook off the ball and in the corner while Harden created offensively didn't utilize any of Westbrook's strengths, which come as a creator and physical attacker of the basket.
After losing the first five games with Harden and Westbrook starting together, Russell Westbrook needed a lot of convincing in order to move him to the bench, league sources told ClutchPoints. And, even once the move was finally done and the team publicly said he offered to come off the bench, Lawrence Frank, Tyronn Lue, and the Clippers needed to speak with Westbrook repeatedly throughout the season to get him to continue to buy in on a bench role behind James Harden.
Westbrook had his ups and downs throughout the year but remained an engine that Clippers fans fell in love with, giving him a loud ovation every time he checked into the game.
In the lone start he made after James Harden's arrival and the lineup shift, Westbrook recorded a 16-point, 15-rebound, and 15-assist triple-double against Kevin Durant and the Suns. That night of April 10th was the last time he spoke with members of the media. He wouldn't speak at any of the three remaining regular season games or the full five-day week of practices before the playoffs and managed to completely avoid media during the six-game series against the Dallas Mavericks.
Would Westbrook, who holds a player option worth $4 million, actually consider returning to the Clippers for a reduced role as a backup behind James Harden?
League sources have told ClutchPoints that Westbrook is not expected to be in a Clippers uniform next season, with Russell reportedly looking at other options that would include opportunity and playing time. There have also been reports of the Clippers' interest in point guards Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry, which would reinforce the idea that they're going to replace him.
PJ Tucker
PJ Tucker has a player option for the 2024-25 season worth $11.5 million. He's widely expected to opt into that and return for his age-39 season. Tucker maintains he can still play a good amount and contribute to a championship-contending team.
“I feel like I still got a lot to contribute to a team to be able to win, whether that's here or somewhere else,” PJ Tucker told ClutchPoints in an exclusive interview back in December. “I know myself, my worth. I know what I bring. I know what I've brought. I know what I can continue to bring. And with that, I want to be able to go to a good team that I can be able to help that.”
The Clippers have tried to play Tucker, but he's really only usable in very specific matchups. He performed well against Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets while making Zion Williamson work to get his. At the end of the day, the Clippers will likely try to find a way to move on. It may be in a trade where they may need to attach an asset or two to convince the other team to pull the trigger. They could also waive and stretch him.
Once the smoke clears and the Clippers have done what they needed to, we could be looking at an entirely different roster.
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