According to Marc Stein (Substack), the Sixers will continue to be the hottest candidate in the offseason if George and the Clippers do not agree on a new contract. But Stein also noted that the Clippers remain the favorite as George wants to continue playing alongside Leonard in his native California.
The nine-time All-Star has a player option for the coming season (around $48.8 million), but according to Stein, the league continues to assume that George will agree on a new long-term contract with the Clippers. Leonard signed an early three-year extension for almost $150 million in January, and the Clippers’ third star, James Harden, will even become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.
John Hollinger (The Athletic) recently speculated that the Clippers are probably trying to keep George for less than the maximum, otherwise he would have signed long ago. If the Clippers want to keep both George and Harden, both would probably have to make sacrifices, otherwise the Clippers would be too expensive.
Nine players are already devouring around $120 million for the coming season, including George’s option, without Harden the Clippers would be very close to the luxury tax limit. In the current season, the Clippers are already significantly over that, owner Steve Ballmer is facing a bill of almost 114 million dollars in addition to salary costs of 200 million.
2024-03-22 06:11:00
#Paul #George #extended #contract #Clippers #Philadelphia #76ers #traded
