Now what? How the Clippers will navigate the post-Paul George era

By / / Sports / 10 minutes of reading


The LA Clippers were confident publicly that they could retain All-Star small forward Paul George, even if he reached unrestricted free agency. They had certain advantages in hand: a relationship that extended five years, a close partnership with fellow All-Star and future Hall of Famer Kawhi Leonard, a stable head coaching situation, a new arena in George’s hometown, even new jerseys from George’s chosen childhood team.

What the Clippers also had was the opportunity to pay George for four years and $221.1 million. That was about $9 million more than any other team could offer him on a four-year deal. They also could have given him a no-trade clause.

Plan A for the Clippers involved retaining George on a similar contract to what Leonard agreed to in January 2024: three years, just over $152 million. George could have accepted an extension as early as September 2023. Instead, extension talks were tabled in February until after the season. When the Clippers were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in May, it seemed likely that George would opt out.

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GO DEEPER

The highs and lows of Paul George’s time with the Clippers

It became clear in June that the Clippers were not budging on their offer. Discussions were ongoing, but George was increasingly turned off by the Clippers’ belief that he wouldn’t leave just so that his family could go to the games, a source close to George told The Athletic. That paled in comparison to the leverage George had as an All-Star with a player option, and a max contract offer from the Philadelphia 76ers, a playoff team with a champion head coach and a recent NBA Most Valuable Player.

By Sunday afternoon, the Clippers put out a statement that did more than just acknowledge George’s departure. It referenced the 2019 trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder that brought George to LA, the greatest achievement of the 213 era, the disappointment of never reaching the NBA Finals, the Clippers’ intention of retaining Leonard, George and James Harden, the severe restrictions of the second apron in the CBA and the short- and long-term goals without George as Intuit Dome opens:

The team had months to develop a Plan B. It colors what the 2024-25 Clippers are beginning to look like as the first couple of days of free agency unfold.

Viewing Harden from the perspective of 2021-22

Yes, the Clippers felt like bringing George back on a three-year deal was worth running it back with Harden and Leonard. But the way to look at the pivot now should be like this:

• George got a four-year, $212 million contract from the 76ers that includes a 2027 player option worth $56.5 million in a season that George will turn 38.

• Harden got a two-year, $70 million contract from the Clippers that includes a 2025 player option worth $35 million in a season that Harden will turn 37.

George is a better player than Harden. But now, Harden is the George replacement, along with and alongside Leonard.

Back in 2021-22, Leonard missed the season while rehabbing an ACL tear. George appeared in only 31 games. Still, head coach Tyronn Lue managed to win 42 games with an offense that had Reggie Jackson and Marcus Morris Sr. at the top of scouting reports.

There’s going to be concern about Leonard and Harden going forward, especially given Leonard’s durability and availability issues and Harden’s mileage and endurance. But if Lue could keep the 2021-22 Clippers above .500, then he is arguably in a better position to do so with both Leonard and Harden in 2024-25, especially when you look at the possible rotation around them.

The wings are back

Harden’s re-signing and George’s departure means that four of the five starting spots from last year’s team are still intact. George lamented how the Harden trade cost the Clippers Robert Covington and Nicolas Batum.

George’s possible replacement in the starting lineup is Derrick Jones Jr., formerly of the 2024 Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks. The Clippers signed Jones, who will be 28 in February, to a three-year, $30 million contract. Jones made himself very familiar with the Clippers and George in particular, as Jones was credited by NBA Advanced Stats with holding George to 41.7 percent shooting from the field in the 2024 playoffs. Jones’ flashiest plays involved him blocking 3-pointers by George and Harden in the first quarter of Game 5, which resulted in a 30-point Mavericks win in George’s final home game as a Clipper:

Jones is listed at 6-foot-6, 210 pounds. Who does that compare with on a recent Clippers roster? Covington, who is 6-7, 209 pounds. Both Jones and Covington are undrafted free-agent success stories who are off-ball players and lengthy defenders. While Covington has the better track record of big plays on defense and 3-point shooting, Jones has improved his shooting while always being renowned for his supreme athleticism.

While Jones is the new Covington, Batum’s return is an upgrade on the player he was essentially traded for, P.J. Tucker. While Tucker opted into the final year of a deal that will pay him $11 million in a season when he will turn 40, the Clippers are expected to part ways with him this offseason, either via a trade or the stretch provision, according to a team source. Batum turns 36 in December, but he is four years younger than Tucker, three inches taller at 6-8, a better shooter, more athletic, and was in the previous four training camps with Lue and the Clippers. Batum is on a biannual exception, making him a free agent again in 2026.

Jones and Batum will be tasked with improving the Clippers defense, while shooting guard Terance Mann, center Ivica Zubac, and shooting guard Norman Powell can expect expanded roles offensively.

Mann’s brief run as the nominal point guard in a starting lineup that included George, Leonard, Zubac, and Morris in January and February 2023 saw Mann average 11.6 points (53.0 percent field-goal shooting), 4.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists (0.9 turnovers), and 1.5 3s (45.5 percent) in 28.8 minutes over a 20-game stretch. All of those numbers would be an improvement on Mann’s full-season output as a full-time starter in 2023-24. Zubac can expect more opportunities to be involved in Harden pick-and-rolls and in post-ups. And Powell will be needed more often as an on-ball threat after leaning heavily into a highly efficient off-ball role on a team that had Leonard, George, Harden and Westbrook soaking up touches.

Rounding out a second unit

On Monday, The Athletic’s Tony Jones reported that the Clippers were looking to secure unrestricted free agent Kris Dunn on a sign-and-trade that would involve the departure of Westbrook, who opted into the final year of his contract.

It’s telling that part of the Clippers’ statement on George’s departure mentioned that the roster had “three great players 33 and over, two of whom could become free agents” and that the franchise “wanted to retain them on contracts that would allow us, under the constraints of the new CBA, to continue building the team.” Westbrook, 35, may be feeling like Isiah Thomas in ‘The Last Dance.” He meets the criteria of a future Hall of Fame player over 33 from LA who could have become a free agent, but the Clippers did not prioritize his return. Even with Westbrook opting into his contract for 2024-25, he is not in the team’s plans.

So it is fitting that Dunn has been identified as a possible replacement for Westbrook. In 2022, Dunn played 15 games in the G League with the Agua Caliente Clippers, as the fifth pick of the 2016 NBA Draft was working on a comeback after an injury-ruined 2020-21 season with the Atlanta Hawks. Dunn would have made my list of free-agent targets if he wasn’t 30, but he is five years younger than Westbrook and is about the same size at 6-3, 205 pounds with a 6-10 wingspan.

Westbrook was a standout defender for the Clippers while adding five rebounds and 1.1 steals per game last season. Dunn isn’t as strong an isolation defender and doesn’t rebound as well (look, no one compares to Westbrook as a rebounding guard), but Dunn is still good at the point of attack and collected 68 steals in 66 games despite averaging only 18.9 minutes per game.

Offensively, Dunn is not comfortable as a shooter, averaging only 1.7 3-point attempts with the Jazz the last two seasons. But Dunn did make 39.5 percent of those 3-point attempts, compared to Westbrook shooting 29.8 percent on 3s the last two seasons on 3.1 attempts per game. Westbrook’s athleticism is still elite, as he had more dunks last season (38) than the previous two years combined (36) despite playing a career-low minutes per game. Dunn had more dunks this past season (17) than the previous four seasons combined (16).

While the Clippers work on a new backup point guard, they were able to secure a new backup center in Mo Bamba, who played with Batum on last season’s 76ers. Bamba, 26, is signed to a one-year minimum contract. Like Dunn, Bamba is a former top-10 pick, drafted sixth out of Texas in 2018 by the Orlando Magic.

Injuries, illness and bouts of ineffectiveness have limited Bamba to fewer than 1,000 minutes in five of his six NBA seasons. The exception was in 2021-22, when Bamba played 1,824 minutes in his last full season with the Magic. He showed an intriguing ceiling as a starter, averaging 8.1 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.5 3s while making 38.1 percent on 3s and 78.1 percent from the free-throw line. Even last season, Bamba averaged 1.1 blocks while making 39.1 percent of his 3s in only 13 minutes per game. At 7-foot, 231 pounds, Bamba has an extraordinary 7-10 wingspan. He is at his best picking and popping for 3s and running the floor in transition offensively, while being kept as a help defender as much as possible.

Bamba is not a strong roller, cutter, or post player, and he struggles to defend without fouling. He is a minimum-contract flier for a reason. But he also gives the Clippers the outline of a presence at the rim on both ends of the floor to go with 3-point shooting, a package the Clippers haven’t had since Serge Ibaka was traded in February 2022. Bamba replaces Mason Plumlee, who departed for the Phoenix Suns.

The Clippers also still have Amir Coffey on the final year of his contract entering next season. Coffey had a chance to start in Leonard’s place next to George in the postseason, and he was in the rotation over Tucker from December through the rest of the season. The additions of Jones and Batum should keep Coffey in a 10th-man role as a backup small forward; his shooting is a plus (38 percent 3s, 85.9 percent free throws). There is a real chance that Leonard will have to be load-managed next season, and Coffey has experience as a starter for extended stretches; in 2021-22, Coffey started 30 games, the majority of them while George rehabbed a torn ligament in his elbow.

Overall outlook

George’s departure from the franchise is a short-term blow that makes it clear that championship expectations should be muted going forward. It’s questionable if the Clippers can expect to be players in free agency in 2025. The franchise still does not control their first-round pick until 2030.

But the goal for the Clippers is to be back in position to attract a max-level player as soon as 2026. By 2027, Leonard’s current contract will expire. Just like the Clippers took two years to bridge from Lob City to 213, they are looking to turn a short-term setback into identifying who will lead their next era.

(Photo of James Harden and Kawhi Leonard: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)





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About The Author

Avatar of Christi Melton
Christi Melton is a writer from The Newspring. She writes about lifestyle, books, sports, education and technology. Her hobbies include reading and playing tennis.

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