The Los Angeles Clippers are a team that many people are going to be keeping an eye on in the coming weeks as we approach the NBA Playoffs. For a large chunk of the season, Los Angeles looked like legitimate contenders, but in the last few weeks, their performance has fallen off.
Injuries to some key players certainly haven’t helped as the team lost Russell Westbrook to a hand fracture on the last night of January. If you are someone who roots for the Clippers, hearing players talking about things like a lack of identity 67 games into a season is not encouraging.
The 2024 NBA offseason is going to be a major one for the franchise. They are not only set to embark on a new era of Clippers basketball at the Inuit Dome, but there is a chance the roster looks vastly different.
How long can Clippers ownership and front office stick to the current core? Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and James Harden are 32, 33 and 34 years old. Is it worth running it back with those three, further putting off any roster building for the future of the franchise?
If the Clippers come up short in the postseason once again, something will need to change in the offseason. That could have involve George being on the move as he is set to hit NBA free agency this summer.
“Keep an eye on Paul George, by the way. Presumably, if there was a max extension sitting around for him, he would have signed it by now; I think it’s fair to say a couple of cap-room teams in the East are, um, “monitoring” this,” wrote John Hollinger of The Athletic.
A team such as the Philadelphia 76ers could have space for one max contract player as Joel Embiid and Paul Reed are the only players they have under contract after this season concludes. A massive deal for Tyrese Maxey will be in the works as well, but with a little maneuvering that can occur after a max deal is given to someone such as George.
There have been whispers that George could look to return to the Indiana Pacers, the team that drafted him 10th overall in 2010. But, they won’t have much wiggle room when it comes to the salary cap.
A sleeper, if George is looking for an up-and-coming team, would be the Orlando Magic. Right in the thick of the playoff race in the Eastern Conference this season, there aren’t many teams in the NBA with a brighter outlook than the Magic, who are loaded with talented young players. A veteran addition such as George could be the missing piece to bring it all together.
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