Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers dribbles the ball in Game 5 of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals against the Denver Nuggets at The Field House in Orlando, Florida, U.S., September 11, 2020. /CFP
When the Los Angeles Clippers announced Thursday they signed a multi-year contract extension, which according to ESPN, was worth $190 million for four years, with Paul George, many agreed it's a terrible deal.
It's hard to argue with the doubters after you look at George's stats for last season. His averaged points dropped sharply both in the regular season and the playoffs. Moreover, he only scored 10 points after going 4-16 in field goals, 2-11 in triples and 0-1 at the free throw line in Game 7 of the series against the Denver Nuggets.
George blamed Clippers former head coach Doc Rivers for his underperformance. "The way I was being used, I felt Doc was trying to play me as like a Ray Allen or like a JJ Redick, all pin-downs. I can do it, but that ain't my game. I need some flow, I need some mixes of pick-and-rolls, I need some post-ups, just different touches, you know what I mean? That last season was just hard overall," said George.
Paul George #13 of the Los Angeles Clippers tries to penetrate in Game 7 of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals against the Denver Nuggets at AdventHealth Arena in Orlando, Florida, U.S., September 13, 2020. /CFP
Not many bought his theory. For example, Kevin O'Connor pointed out that 33 percent of George's plays last season were finished in pick-and-roll, higher than any previous season. In fact, George's prior high was 25 percent in the Oklahoma City Thunder. "That's very different from a Ray Allen or JJ Redick style role," tweeted O'Connor.
Meanwhile, Anthony Davis, who just helped the Los Angeles Lakers win the purple and gold's first NBA Championship in 10 years last season, extended his contract for another five years of $190 million. By contrast, George's deal will pay him $226 million in the next five years and he did not even take his team to the Western Conference Finals last season. That comparison just made George's deal seems even more like a waste of money.
However, the Clippers did not actually have much choice other than throwing a big check to keep George. In 2019 summer, the team gave five first-round draft picks to OKC to introduce George, as requested by Kawhi Leonard. One of the consequences of doing it was that LAC won't have any first-rounder of their own until 2027.
Kawi Leonard #2 and Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers in the game against the Boston Celtics at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, U.S., November 20, 2019. /CFP
Furthermore, when George and Leonard joined the Clippers, the team could only guarantee their use for two years because both can choose to opt out of their contracts in 2021 summer to become unrestricted free agents. If George and Leonard leave then, the Clippers will feel the pain of tanking for nothing.
Usually winning a ring is the best way to convince a player to stay, but the Clippers failed to do so in the first of their short two-year must-win window. Offering a big deal seemed to be the best Plan B already.
When both LeBron James and Davis extended their contracts with the Lakers this month, they made sure the purple and gold will remain both competitive in the league and attractive to role players for at least three years in the future. In order to be able to contend with their "Hallway Rival," the Clippers need to keep their own super star. George may not be at James's or Davis's level, but he may affect Leonard's decision.
Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers passes the ball in Game 7 of the NBA Western Conference Semifinals against the Denver Nuggets at AdventHealth Arena, September 13, 2020. /CFP
In fact, LAC should have seen this coming when they recruited Leonard in the first place. They overdrew their future to get George because Leonard wanted him before agreeing to join; they gave Leonard (and George) privileges even if it made others understandably unhappy; now they kept George with a juicy new deal that he hardly deserves, which is only another desperate move to convince Leonard to stay.
George was trying to convince Leonard to stay as well after signing the contract extension. "The responsibility is to make him feel like the way I felt when I came into my extension. I knew where I wanted to be. I knew who I wanted to play with. That's my responsibility to go into this season. Again, it's Kawhi's decision. I'm a grown man. If he decides to go elsewhere, that's a decision where I'll be happy for him. But my hope and my responsibility and what I love is to play with him for the rest of my contract or the rest of his contract. So I guess I got to work on that when it comes down to his time," said George.
By the way, when Leonard signed the 2+1 deal with the Clippers in 2019 summer, he was going after both flexibility and qualification for a supermax designated veteran player rule (DVPR) contract. However, since one has to play at least three years for one team before he's able to sign a DVPR deal, Leonard may not make his decision until 2021 summer.