Paul George, LA Clippers ‘Not on the Same Page’ in Contract Negotiations

Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers has been one of the most prominent names to appear in talks about this upcoming offseason. He has a player option he could accept that would see him remain with the team through the 2024-25 season, but he could also opt out of his contract and either sign with another team, or sign a brand-new contract with the Clippers.

Recent reports by Brian Windhorst suggest George may be leaning towards opting out, as the parties don’t appear to be in agreement.

Here’s a look at why George and the Clippers might not be the best fit, and why George could very well end up with a new team next season.

Are the Clippers the Best Fit for George?

A lack of both individual and team success suggests George might do better elsewhere

Although George joining Kawhi Leonard in Los Angeles was promoted as the next premier super team back in 2019, there’s been little if any real success between the pair. George even plays better when Leonard is off the court, which has been a good chunk of his time with the team.

This could very well be because he needs to make up for the production his team is losing in Leonard’s absence, but in doing so he’s shown just how effective he can be as the team’s leader. Accruing a sample size the length of a full season, George proved he can still be the top option (or a ‘1B’ player) on a team.

Unfortunately for George, this level of play hasn’t translated to team success. Since his arrival, the team has yet to make it out of the West a single time.

In his first season, they made the Conference Semifinals and were one game away from making the Conference Finals. The following season, they managed to make it to the Conference Finals, but lost to the Phoenix Suns in six games. This would be the height of their success during George’s tenure, as they failed to make the postseason the following year and have been stuck in the first round in the two seasons since.

George may not still be in his prime, but he’s grown his game and rounded himself out as a player. Despite averaging fewer points and rebounds with the Clippers, George is posting more assists per game than he has with any other team. He also raised his field goal percentage while remaining a 20-plus point per-game scorer.

If George declines his player option, both he and his teammate James Harden will enter the offseason as unrestricted free agents. This could be disastrous if the Clippers are intent on keeping the trio of Leonard, George, and Harden together, but could provide an opportunity to restructure their team if they want to split the players up.

Removing one or both of these players from the team would free up a large amount of cap space (George’s contract alone is worth $176,265,466 over four years), and give the team more flexibility with the kinds of players they can target this offseason. Regardless of where he ends up, though, George has proven he still has a lot of quality basketball left to play.

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At nearly 34, Paul George may opt out in hopes of landing one last long-term, lucrative deal. And he could find greener pastures in his search.