The Clippers are preparing for the possibility that veteran forward P.J. Tucker will still be on their roster when the regular season begins, league sources tell Law Murray of The Athletic.
Tucker, who had a limited role in Los Angeles last season after arriving from Philadelphia in the James Harden trade, picked up his $11.54MM player option for the 2024/25 season in June.
Murray previously reported that L.A. was expected to part ways with the 13-year NBA veteran this offseason, either by trading or waiving him. However, moving Tucker’s expiring contract in a salary-dump trade would almost certainly require the Clippers to attach more valuable assets, given his negative trade value.
There aren’t many teams around the league who are in position to take on Tucker’s $11.54MM salary and the Clippers likely don’t feel as much urgency to move off the contract at this point, given that they’ve already used their bi-annual exception and most of their mid-level exception — removing Tucker’s deal from their books wouldn’t really create much practical spending flexibility.
While Murray suggests that a deal is unlikely to happen before training camp, Tucker remains a strong candidate to be moved at some point before the February trade deadline. His expiring salary could be used for matching purposes to help accommodate a mid-season move for the Clippers.
Tucker appeared in just 28 regular season games for Los Angeles in 2023/24, averaging 1.6 points and 2.5 rebounds in 15.0 minutes per contest, and he wasn’t used until Game 5 of the club’s first-round playoff series vs. Dallas.
During his best years in Houston, Tucker was a tough, switchable frontcourt defender who had the quickness to guard out to the perimeter and the strength to match up against bigger players. He was also a threat to knock down corner threes on offense. Now 39 years old, the forward is no longer as effective a three-and-D contributor and doesn’t command serious attention from opposing defenses — he averaged just 1.6 shot attempts per game in 2023/24.
I would have thought the Clippers would have required any team taking Paul George to have PJ Tucker attached. But I guess that went out the window when George elected total free agency lol.
He not only walked out the door for nothing, the Clippers couldn’t attach less favorable contracts to him in a trade. Tough situation all around.
said it from the moment the paperwork was wet… Tucker leaving the heat was a massive mistake.. hope the extra 10% (which he probably lost in taxes ironically) was worth all the stress and loss of career PJ
Loss of a career? He’s old AF, his career is over no matter what team he plays for.
He’s 39 years old. The only guy older in the NBA is Lebron.
Lebron is also probably the only player talked about more in the media who actually matters less on the court.
Yup that bump up in salary, got shaved by taxes …. but it’s still a bump.
The HEAT was where he had his best role, most playing freedom …. PJ said as much (same as his early PHX years).
heat offered 3/27…. he signed for 3/30 because he was tampered with. 100% because Embiid wanted them to sign him
Clippers are so lost when it comes to trades. Could have traded him before all the teams used up their extra money. Would needed to attach something good to the deal but now they have nothing but pay him all his money.
Money is not an issue for the clippers, so why give up an asset to avoid paying him. It doesn’t hurt the team to pay him, or waive him and eat the salary.
Deep thoughts. Maybe because if they attached draft capital they could have traded him for someone they might actually play? Maybe?
Clip
Clippers lost PG & couldn’t even replace him with Derozen. New stadium money and they took a step backwards.
Lavine for Powell/tucker/coffee would be intriguing. Clips have no incentive to tank
I think that would make them less efficient on offence and much worse on defence.
Thought he hated sitting on the bench and getting no run.
At best he’s not a distraction.
China is calling tucker. They want their fake off-whites back.
china doesn’t want a 39 year old who can’t create his own shot.