Clippers news: Lou Williams nears huge decision that will impact his future in L.A.

After a series of trade talks from various teams, reports from key NBA insiders are now saying that L.A. Clippers guard Lou Williams has been taken out of the trading block.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the 13-year veteran guard is getting closer to signing a new contract:

“Extension discussions between guard Lou Williams and the L.A. Clippers have gathered significant momentum, and a new contract is within reach before Thursday afternoon's NBA trade deadline, league sources told ESPN.

Rival teams were increasingly resigned late Tuesday night that Williams, 31, was exiting the trade market and returning to the Clippers on a multiyear contract, league sources said.”

Wojnarowski and Windhorst's colleague, Bobby Marks, also gave insights via Twitter:

Lou Williams and the Clippers can negotiate an extension of up to four-years with a total amount of $42M. The extension would reflect 120% of the average player salary and is comparable to Josh Richardson and Norman Powell. Williams benefits from the… https://t.co/Llsi9xCJiL

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) February 7, 2018

Below is the complete tweet:

“Williams benefits from the change in the new CBA that allows a player on a 3 year contract to extend on the 2nd anniversary. Previously, only players that signed a 4 or 5 year contract were eligible. The last date to sign an extension is June 30 and Williams would be ineligible to be traded for 6 months.”

There's no arguing that Williams is well-deserving of an increased payday. He has delivered big for the rebuilding Clippers, giving them a scoring punch beyond expectations. Despite sharing the ball with Austin Rivers, who plays a similar style, and Blake Griffin for much of the season, “Sweet Lou” is still able to average career-highs of 23.3 points, 5.3 assists, and 2.8 made threes per game.

Expect Williams to continue being the Clippers' top option moving forward. He will form a 3-point-loving core with Rivers, Danilo Gallinari, along with new acquisitions Avery Bradley and Tobias Harris.