By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
According to The Athletic, Paul George wanted to go to the Golden State Warriors. The Los Angeles Clippers knew this.
The Warriors have variations of deals ready to offer to the Clippers that they hoped would work. Plus, they were willing to give him the four-year contract that he was seeking.
The Clippers were not willing to give him a four-year contract. According to our sources, they were only willing to give him a three-year deal.
The article said that Stephen Curry and Draymond Green were on board with this potential blockbuster move. However, the deal got crushed when the Clippers were not willing to play ball.
“The Warriors had agreed to give George a max, four-year extension upon arrival,” the article said. “They believed they had proposed several variations of a trade that the Clippers could and would accept. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green were 100 percent on board. George gave strong indications he wanted to join the Warriors. But the Clippers never agreed to any version of a trade, and now George is a free agent and essentially beyond the Warriors’ reach.”
Now, the Clippers will receive nothing in return for George, who was acquired by the team in 2019. He intends to sign a maximum contract with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Once free agency starts on July 6th, George can officially agree to a four-year, $212 million deal with the 76ers.
When he signs, he’ll be part of a three-star team. He joins Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, who is expected to sign a five year extension once the new league year starts.
The Clippers believe they may have a low-coat solution to replace George. The team intends to sign Derrick Jones Jr. to a 3-year, $30 million deal.
The 34-year-old George has spent time with the Indiana Pacers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the Clippers.
In his final season with the Clippers, he appeared in 74 games. He started all 74 games.
He averaged 22.6 points per game. He also averaged 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.5 blocks per contest.
The 22.6 points per game were his second-lowest with the Clippers. In his first season during the 2019-20 season, he averaged 21.5 points per contest.
