The Clippers and Paul George have completed an extension that will keep the star forward under contract for four additional years beyond 2020/21, agent Aaron Mintz tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Clippers have officially announced George’s new deal.
The four-year extension – which will go into effect in 2021/22, replacing George’s current player option – will be worth the maximum salary and will include a new player option for the ’24/25 season, according to Wojnarowski.
The four-year extension projects to be worth approximately $176.3MM, assuming a 3% salary cap increase for next season. After earning about $35.5MM in 2020/21, George would receive a projected $39.3MM in the first year of his new deal, with 8% annual raises from there. The final-year player option would be worth $48.8MM. Those figures would all be a little higher if the cap increases by more than 3%.
“This is an important moment for our franchise and our fans, to secure a long-term commitment from one of the premier two-way players in the NBA,” Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “We aspire to create a destination for players, an environment where they can succeed and enjoy their success. We’re delighted by Paul’s pride in representing Clippers fans, honored that he trusts the organization with this chapter of his career, and share in his relentless pursuit of championships.”
Although George only joined the Clippers in 2019, he was eligible to sign a veteran contract extension because it has been more than two years since he signed his current contract with the Thunder.
The move comes on the heels of George telling reporters that he’d like to retire as a Clipper. This doesn’t necessarily assure him of that — he could be traded before 2025, and even if he plays out his full contract with the Clippers, he’ll be 35 years old when it expires, so he could sign elsewhere at that point to continue his career.
Still, the extension means that George – like LeBron James, who also recently completed an extension – will no longer have the opportunity to become a free agent in 2021. His teammate Kawhi Leonard can still opt out next year and will be ineligible to sign an extension before then, but there has been no indication that the two-time Finals MVP plans to leave Los Angeles. The Clippers appear fully committed to continuing to build around the Leonard/George duo.
[RELATED: 2020/21 NBA Contract Extension Tracker]
George averaged 21.5 PPG and 5.7 RPG in 48 regular season games in his first season as a Clipper in 2019/20. Those numbers were his lowest in five years, but he was also coming off shoulder surgery and was limited to 29.6 minutes per contest, his lowest-full season average since his rookie year. He’s believed to be 100% healthy this year and will look to recapture the form that made him a six-time All-Star and five-time All-NBA player.
As a result of signing a new contract that exceeds the extend-and-trade limits, George will be ineligible to be traded during the 2020/21 regular season, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Clippers should have tried to trade this dude(and other assests) for giannis.
Eligible to be traded after 3 months
Literally says in the article he can’t be traded this season lmaoooo
the dude said “should have,” not should, so I’m guessing they meant instead of extending, clips should have tried to trade pg now or at the deadline for Giannis
Thank you for throughly reading my comment!
NBA could still change the trade deadline this year.
I posted this before the article was completed
George trade restricted at April 9
Clips gave Blake Griffin a similar contract, then traded him six months later.
For all they have up to get George, hopefully they get their money’s worth somehow. If not using him as a Clipper, at least turning him into some assets.
Ya’ll should chill. They were the clear favorite and then imploded in a series. Kawahii doesnt hear ghosts, its not even clear he’s human. This team should be maaaad competitive for the next 3-4 years. Seriously, outside the Lakers who are you definitely taking over the Clipps?
Well someone thinks Giannis is better and that GM Horst wants him out of Milwaukee.
And Denver will win it all at some point.
Yeah Denver may win it all, but not in our lifetime.
Wasn’t long ago this was said about Golden State for decades.
Anyone in the playoffs
It’s not a guarantee that they would be able to trade for him anyways. For one the bucks aren’t gonna trade him unless backed into a corner by Giannis. And even then they’re gonna fight tooth and nail not to trade him, and rightfully so. So honestly I wouldn’t worry too much about that.
lol giannis still cant even shoot or lead his team to win the east..his game needs shooters around while George can fit in on any team
Pairing gannis and kawhi would do wonders for both. Giannis will take the charge if kawhi sits out & down the stretch, kawhi will take the big shots.
Lol George still can’t even drive or lead any team anywhere… his game needs talent around while Giannis can fit in on any team.
The clippers dont have any other assets tho is the problem
Smart move for both parties. PG gets that financial guarantee, Clippers should have a better chance of keeping Lenord and if not it’s a trade asset.
If clippers don’t win this year kawhi won’t be a clipper going forward. Pg would have a hard time getting this deal on the open market after his poor play, clippers had to for all the picks they gave up to get him.
Trade asset? Max deals are not really good assets. They have made great players like Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and John Wall virtually impossible to trade except for each other.
Max deals for aging/injured second and third tier stars aren’t good assets. There are only a handful of players (LeBron, AD, Giannis, Kawhi, etc.) that are actually worth that amount. The system is flawed.
Except those guys are not second tier stars. Paul is one of the league’s most recognizable stars and Wall was the face of a franchise for nearly a decade. Westbrook was the league MVP when he signed the deal. How much more first tier can you expect to get if not the MVP?
Well I guess the definition of second tier, third tier, etc. is subjective but the point is that only the top 5-10 players in the league actually deserve max contracts. And yeah, Westbrook won an MVP but it’s since been shown he’s not a player that can lead a team to a championship.
It doesn’t matter what was shown AFTER he signed the deal. The point is that he was MVP when he signed it. As of right now, Giannis has never led a team to a championship, but I don’t think anyone would claim that he is not worthy of a supermax deal.
Paul is one of the leagues most recognizable stars? Uh…that’s a bit of a stretch, I’d say. Paul is not in the top ten.
To the average fan that sees Paul in all of those national State Farm commercials, he is one of the most recognizable stars. That doesn’t mean he is the best player, but he is very recognizable. And I’d argue that Paul is #2 most recognizable star behind LeBron to a non-NBA fan.
Chris Paul
I seriously didn’t know Paul George was in those commercials.
I was talking about Chris Paul man. Go back to the original comment and go from there.
Lets be honest Leonard is going to do whatever he wants and being (stuck ) with PG could be just as much of a determent as a boon this time next season-
Clips did do good imo w the re-sign tho….they have to think about life after Kawahi and that starts today
After 2 years Pandemic P won’t look like an asset with that contract. Will be getting older and more expensive year after year. Look at CP3 – still good player, top 5 PG in the league but for that money in his age + with his injury history? Ain’t worth that money.
On the other side – if his contract would be like a half of what he’s getting – he would be pretty hot commodity on after market.
what a waste of money. Thats why they are the Clippers.
First – Morris.
Now – PG13.
Looks like they’re desperate.
No question the Clippers are desperate. They are scrambling in the dark. There is a reason Rivers wanted out.
Welp, looks like clips continue to be clips. Its a laker town forever
Totally, until the end of time.
It never wasnt…… dont let the National media fool you with some kind of contrived push or pull within the city……
Clippers fans are just loud small dogs watching the show from the inside of the window
Why… why would the Clippers do this?
PG13 is worth a max. Just that, one might hope it’s another team doing it.
He looks in good condition but has shoulder issues.
He also seems to have personal issues. As in, he disappears when the pressure mounts and he is reportedly not liked by his teammates.
He ain’t and you’ll see it in next 2-3 years when his contract turns untradeable.
Wow , Steve Ballmer is a smart man should of stayed out of basketball. This is a Joke. Hope PG gives half of this to overrated part time Kawai because that is the only reason he got it.
This franchise has bent over backwards for Paul George, a perennial playoff choker. This is why the Clippers will always be little brother.
More like 3rd cousin.. they have to sniff a finals before they can come to the little brother table.. that will never happen..
playoff choker? lol most of PG13’s team have been playoffs teams but not true contenders until the Clippers..PG13 barely had time to gel with everyone..its the same way Lebron/Wade didnt gel in 2011 and needed another season…
LeBron never hit the side of the backboard tho
He also never blew a 3-1 series lead while scoring 0 points in the fourth quarter of the deciding game 7. That was a truly historical display of futility.
Lebron wade and bosh where inevitable to be the champions! That was 3 top 15 at worse players ! Kawhi and pg13 are not even close to inevitable that’s one top 5 player another top 15 to 20 player and no other players who are top 60 ! Clippers have a good shot of winning no titles in the Kawhi pg13 era! I like nets odds to win won or two over them to be honest! They have a move to add another star in them one better then Irving
Even if you excuse the losses to LeBron he has choked. OKC had home court and was favored to beat Utah, embarrassing loss. They were also swept by Portland. 3-1 this year. How much do you need?
Wade and Lebron got to finals in first season.. didn’t have time to gel?.. clippers integrated 5 new players over the season.. lakers integrated 9 and won a ring..those pacers teams were pretty good.. not good enough to knock off lebron but we’re title contenders in the East..the max salary system is flawed.. to me, a max player is a player fans go to watch.. lebron and ad would fall under that category.. kawhi would.. pandemic paul, no
Forever.
I’m not a huge PG fan, but I’ll wait to judge pretty much any team until we have a regular, normal season again. So 2021-22. This season’s going to have a lot of weirdness and teams of varied level of preparedness through no fault of their own and which we won’t necessarily know about.
The thing about George isn’t just that he has a history of disappearing in big games, it’s that his teammates reportedly don’t like him. True or not, that is drama which is quite negative.
29 years old George and 24 years old Wiggins have about the same stats last season
Scoring
Wiggins better 0.4
Rebound
George better 0.6
Assist
George better 0.4
George is now age 30.5
Wiggins 3 years $95 million
George 4 years $190 million
Wiggins usually plays 82 games
George missed 76 games a season 2014
95m x 2 = 190m
But: defense. George is overrated defensively, but he’s in a totally different class than Wiggins. The offensive numbers are pretty misleading, too, given that the Warriors basically had nobody else last season.
Wiggins didn’t play very many games for GSW last year. He only played 12 games for GSW and had better numbers as a member of the wolves.
The Twolves didn’t have any other perimeter scoring either.
Not a concise analysis. Are other readers supposed to finish the idea? Which is, what?
Why give a guy who is super overrated a190
Million dollar deal?! He ain’t playoff P !!!!!
Everyone knows, as of December 23rd, 2020, I’m a Lakers fan.
George said 4 days ago
Doc Rivers did not use him properly
Doc also clowned him saying that lue was next to him when drawing up the plays so don’t expect any in game adjustments.. pg13 is a clown.. ty Lue rode lebrons coattails
Not taking responsibilities for his own failings (oh no, they got me too many open catch and shoot opportunities!!!! was basically his complaint) doesn’t give me a lot of confidence in his ability to further improve.
George did say that…but the shots he got and the stats and film does not back his claim up. What he meant to say was “I choked but that will not make me look good so I blamed my ex-coach”
He’s from LA I’m sure he’s happy to end his career there. Kawhi ain’t going anywhere. He’s legacy is built on beating Bron. It’s why he’s with Clippers not Lakers. He will resign next. Clippers are still a contender. And capable of beating Lakers. It’s amusing how we forget real talent. Based on a bad loss. George took the Heat to seven gms by himself. And they never should have blown a 3-1 lead. Even without a real PG. Doc and team deserve blame for that. But Lakers were not a lock to beat them. So don’t count them out just yet. They still have best talent evaluator in the business
“Mr Clutch”.
In Paul George’s case it wasn’t just one bad loss. “It’s amusing how we forget real talent”….Amusing? For example?…”And they never should have blown a 3-1 lead” Well don’t look now but they did. Just ’cause Jerry West might know a good player when he sees one, you still have to be able to get said player. And
Jerry is getting a little long in the tooth now, 82 yrs. old. One of the reasons Kawhi chose the Clips over the Lakers was he knew Lebron was the leader and he’d be 2nd fiddle. And Anthony Davis compliments LBJ much better than Leonard anyway. Kawhi doesn’t say much but he’s a moody dude.
The advertiser logo on the Clippers jersey says it all.
That’s where he probably met his wife lol
Clippers went from being title favourites, to title contenders, to 3-1 flakes, sacking a respectable coach, letting the 6th man of the year walk across town, and then paid the man who let you down the most when it mattered.
This is what separates the Clippers from the Lakers. Clippers couldn’t even make the second round of the playoffs with prime CP3, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and JJ Reddick.
Just wait and see Kawhi Leonard want to leave or request a trade. The locker room remains a mess with Beverly and Lou Will even with Harrell gone. They didn’t address the floor general needs, they did bring in his mate Ibaka but it’s a little bit to late.
Lakers/LJ literally turned down a chance at George to wait on AD. This signing will be good for the rivalry.
I wonder if I underperform on either of my two jobs if I will get employee of the year, a bonus and fully paid lavish dinners from my companies??? I digress though.
Please tell me they are gonna flip him for if not Harden(although tough cause rox will want picks too) or Buddy Hield, Barnes and Bjelicia.
Cause when PG chokes again in pivotal playoff games, Kawhi is as good as gone next summer!NBA players should never complain!
a contract like this rarely pays off but they had no choice because they gave up a lot for him. Clips have a good team and will be one of the top teams. They brought all this hate on themselves because Ballmer paid for a media blitz on how great they are and by how they choked. That was last year and unfortunately will probably be better this year. I am a die hard Lakers fan for many years but I am more of a basketball fan and love a competitive league
Great deal for Paul George!
QUESTIONS:
Is it a good deal for the Clippers?
What if Kawhi were to also re-sign for 4 years- Would the deal look better?
What do you Clippers fans think of this deal, both with Kawhi leaving or Kawhi staying?
Is Paul George likable to you and easy to root for?
For Lakers fans- who is more unlikable, the Clippers or Balmer himself?
Love the Lakers!
As a Laker fan I can say I like Balmer and think him and logo make a dynamic duo…… Clippers fans on the other hand are some of the loudest folks you will ever hear for a team thats never been to a WCF
Good news for the Clips, and that’s what it is – news – that PG13 is willing to extend and forego FA. There isn’t a team in the league that wouldn’t have sought out a max extension with a player of this caliber. Given what the Clips gave up to get him, that applies 10 fold to them. They still need to get KL to reup, but I suspect that will be easier with PG13 on board.
Good money after bad.
Ballmer should just move the team to Seattle. Get out of the Laker’s shadow. There is PLENTY of money to be made out there!
Or San Diego. I am sure Kawhi would like that.
Ridiculous money….. insane….
Bye bye Clippers. New stadium…old history of losing continues. Chemistry issues continue…KL goes to Lakers. Write it down. PG is a choking dog…prima donna…this contract makes it worse.
It’s interesting how there are always dozens of comments written here whenever the Clippers and Rockets are up for discussion, and the majority of them are quite disparaging. It’s almost like there is some sort of herd mentality here involving the fans of the other 28 teams, and they will brand anyone a hater for saying anything bad about any team except the Rockets and Clippers. Keep on bleating folks.
Nowhere there is a compliment on the signing.
There is a hint of a switch of allegience!
George has a tendency to be annoying, and most fans seem to prefer the star still in the potential stage over the star in the tried & failed stage.
But that’s exactly where Pandemic P is right now – failed in IND, faild in OKC & now failed in LAC after 3-1 lead. Looks like a tried & failed stage to me.
Watever man, good luck waiting for the draft lottery – oh wait, rockets pick this season is swapable with OKC – not OKC’s own pick, which will be high, but swappable with Miami’s pick)))
Imagine bottoming out, only to give OKC a top pick in a loaded draft – thats were the beard gets you!
Paul George is doomed… he plays the same position as the team’s star, Kawhi, who does not seem too inclined to leave.
George has to play the 4, which if nothing else, deprives the team of a 4 on the court.
The guy is too easily recruited… a social problem.
Lack of a floor general means the Clips could still spend the next year jelling, then again next year when/if they get one.
This is shocking. Not a good move IMO. Players don’t even like the guy. Willing to bet Kawhi leaves but at least this gives them one guy to still build around even if does always either end up hurt or being super inconsistent in the playoffs. r least he’s good during the regular season I guess.
A max deal as reputation damage control. That’s a new one.