9-time NBA All-Star Paul George declined his $48.8 million choice to play for the Los Angeles Clippers subsequent season, making himself one of many league’s most coveted free brokers, in accordance with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The 34-year-old averaged 22.6 factors (on 47/41/91 capturing splits), 5.2 rebounds and three.5 assists per recreation this previous season, main the Clippers to the primary spherical of the playoffs. They misplaced to the Dallas Mavericks.
The Clippers can provide George a four-year, $221 million most contract. They’ve been unwilling to supply greater than the three-year, $152.4 million extension that Kawhi Leonard signed in the course of the season, in accordance with a number of studies. George’s choice to choose out will put the Clippers’ intentions to the take a look at.
BREAKING: Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George is declining his $48.7M choice and getting into free company, sources inform ESPN. He’s planning to set conferences with cap area groups and the Clippers starting Sunday evening. An opt-in/commerce situation is now gone. pic.twitter.com/kASDp58eDD
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 29, 2024
The Clippers traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari and the rights to seven first-round draft picks for George in the summertime of 2019, as they had been additionally within the strategy of recruiting Leonard to L.A. This previous season marked the primary time George performed greater than 56 video games in a season for the Clippers.
George led the franchise to its first look within the Western Convention finals in 2021.
The Philadelphia 76ers, who rely themselves as the one championship contender with max wage cap area, have lengthy been anticipated to be suitors, even after The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the staff’s curiosity in George “has considerably waned.” (Possibly as a result of his curiosity in them has waned?) Sixers star Joel Embiid was overtly recruiting George to Philadelphia on reside TV in the course of the NBA Finals.
Nevertheless, championship competition will not be George’s sole function in free company.
“Individuals saying chasing a championship,” George mentioned throughout a current episode of his podcast, addressing his free-agency targets. “It’s not that, however it’s taking part in the fitting type of basketball is what I’m chasing.”
George can signal with one other staff for as a lot as $212 million over the subsequent 4 seasons. The Detroit Pistons are at the moment the one staff moreover the Sixers anticipated to clear sufficient cap area to signal him.