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Pacific Notes: Kawhi/PG-13, CP3, Green, Saric

January 28th, 2021 at 9:15pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue has noted that his stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, absent thus far from the club’s six-game road trip due to coronavirus protocols, are “feeling well,” but he would not elaborate on when he expected them to return to the team, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

“Mentally, they’re in a great place,” Clippers reserve point guard Reggie Jackson said of the two unavailable wings. “They are doing all they can to get back as soon as possible.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Suns All-Star point guard Chris Paul has verbalized his frustration with his club following Phoenix’s third straight loss, according to Royce Young of ESPN. “I’m not going to say we’re not good enough, but we’re not playing well enough right now,” Paul said following a 102-97 home loss to the Thunder.
  • After being traded from the Lakers this offseason, Sixers small forward Danny Green holds no ill will toward Los Angeles, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. In fact, Green stays in touch with his old teammates. “I still call them brothers,” Green said. “We still have a bond forever, because of what we achieved together and the time we spent in the bubble.”
  • The Suns are hopeful that forward Dario Saric, who has been conditioning for several days after being absent due to the league’s coronavirus protocols, can return for the team’s game against the Mavericks this Saturday, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM tweets. In seven games this season, Saric is averaging 10.6 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 1.0 APG. He is connecting on 35.7% of his 4.0 three-point attempts per game.
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Leonard, George Placed On Health And Safety Protocol List

January 25th, 2021 at 4:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Clippers stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George will miss the team’s game in Atlanta on Tuesday after being placed on the league’s health and safety protocol list, the team’s PR department announced.

The superstar duo didn’t fly to Atlanta with the rest of the team, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN tweets.

The Clippers, who are off to a 13-4 start, carry a seven-game winning streak into their six-game road trip. They’re also schedule to face Miami (Thursday), Orlando (Friday), New York (Sunday), Brooklyn (Tuesday, Feb. 2) and Cleveland (Wednesday, Feb. 3) before returning home to face Boston on Friday, Feb. 5.

It’s possible that Leonard and/or George will join the team at some point on its journey if they clear protocols, Youngmisuk adds.

Leonard and George are the latest big-name players to miss time due to COVID-19 protocols. Jimmy Butler, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant and Jayson Tatum are among the top-level players who have been sidelined by the protocols in recent weeks.

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Los Angeles Notes: George, Scrubb, James

January 16th, 2021 at 3:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Paul George is playing with a chip on his shoulder after his subpar performances during last season’s playoffs, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN writes. George’s shooting percentages are a career best while averaging 25.3 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 5.2 APG and 1.3 SPG. “I’m coming back with vengeance,” the Clippers forward said. “I didn’t like, not so much of the noise and everything around [the way last season ended], but just the fact that people saw weakness. And I had to address that. I had to answer that. That fueled me.” George signed a four-year, max extension last month.

We have more on the two Los Angeles teams:

  • Clippers rookie guard Jay Scrubb got his cast removed last week after he fractured a bone in his foot, Adam Zagoria of the New York Times tweets. He may play during the G League’s “bubble” season in Orlando, which begins next month, Zagoria adds. A second-round pick and last season’s JUCO Player of the Year, Scrubb signed a two-way contract with the Clippers in November.
  • Lakers star LeBron James said that playing fewer minutes during lopsided games has very little impact on him, he noted during a press conference this week. “I’m 36 years old, 18 years in this league. Ain’t no saving something for later on in the season,” he said. “My body is ready to play whenever I need to play throughout the course of the game. … I wish I could ‘bank’ time.” James has appeared in all 14 Lakers games this season, averaging 31.8 MPG.
  • James is making a major swap in the cola wars. He’s signing with Pepsi to promote the Mountain Dew brand, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. James has been endorsing Coca-Cola products since his rookie season in 2003.
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Clippers Notes: Ibaka, Zubac, George, Morris, Williams, Beverley

December 12th, 2020 at 3:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Serge Ibaka started at center in the Clippers‘ preseason opener and coach Tyronn Lue will continue to have the prized free agent acquisition work with the first unit, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic. Ivica Zubac started regularly last season when Doc Rivers was the head coach.

“Zu started the last couple of years and did a great job,” Lue said. “Just kind of seeing this team, what style of play we want to play at, right now, tonight we went with Serge and we’ll continue to see how that looks.”

Ibaka has the ability to stretch defenses and defend the perimeter more adeptly that Zubac, while Zubac is a better screener and roller and rim protector, Buha adds.

We have more on the Clippers:

  • The front office checked around the league to determine Paul George‘s trade value before deciding that an extension was the best option, The Ringer’s Paolo Uggetti reports. George signed a max four-year extension that kicks in for the 2021/22 season. George could have opted out of his contract after the upcoming season without the extension. The market for George around the league would have likely gotten him that same contract elsewhere, Uggetti adds.
  • Forward Marcus Morris sat out the preseason opener due to minor knee soreness, Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times writes. “We’re just being cautious,” Lue said. The Clippers re-signed Morris on a four-year, $64MM deal after acquiring him in a trade last season.
  • Patrick Beverley and/or Lou Williams could be traded during the season, though Beverley’s contract might be tough to move, some anonymous front office executives and scouts told Sam Amick of The Athletic. The Clippers didn’t truly address their point guard situation in the offseason but that could change as the season progresses.
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Clippers Sign Paul George To Four-Year Max Extension

December 10th, 2020 at 12:21pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers and Paul George have completed an extension that will keep the star forward under contract for four additional years beyond 2020/21, agent Aaron Mintz tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Clippers have officially announced George’s new deal.

The four-year extension – which will go into effect in 2021/22, replacing George’s current player option – will be worth the maximum salary and will include a new player option for the ’24/25 season, according to Wojnarowski.

The four-year extension projects to be worth approximately $176.3MM, assuming a 3% salary cap increase for next season. After earning about $35.5MM in 2020/21, George would receive a projected $39.3MM in the first year of his new deal, with 8% annual raises from there. The final-year player option would be worth $48.8MM. Those figures would all be a little higher if the cap increases by more than 3%.

“This is an important moment for our franchise and our fans, to secure a long-term commitment from one of the premier two-way players in the NBA,” Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “We aspire to create a destination for players, an environment where they can succeed and enjoy their success. We’re delighted by Paul’s pride in representing Clippers fans, honored that he trusts the organization with this chapter of his career, and share in his relentless pursuit of championships.”

Although George only joined the Clippers in 2019, he was eligible to sign a veteran contract extension because it has been more than two years since he signed his current contract with the Thunder.

The move comes on the heels of George telling reporters that he’d like to retire as a Clipper. This doesn’t necessarily assure him of that — he could be traded before 2025, and even if he plays out his full contract with the Clippers, he’ll be 35 years old when it expires, so he could sign elsewhere at that point to continue his career.

Still, the extension means that George – like LeBron James, who also recently completed an extension – will no longer have the opportunity to become a free agent in 2021. His teammate Kawhi Leonard can still opt out next year and will be ineligible to sign an extension before then, but there has been no indication that the two-time Finals MVP plans to leave Los Angeles. The Clippers appear fully committed to continuing to build around the Leonard/George duo.

[RELATED: 2020/21 NBA Contract Extension Tracker]

George averaged 21.5 PPG and 5.7 RPG in 48 regular season games in his first season as a Clipper in 2019/20. Those numbers were his lowest in five years, but he was also coming off shoulder surgery and was limited to 29.6 minutes per contest, his lowest-full season average since his rookie year. He’s believed to be 100% healthy this year and will look to recapture the form that made him a six-time All-Star and five-time All-NBA player.

As a result of signing a new contract that exceeds the extend-and-trade limits, George will be ineligible to be traded during the 2020/21 regular season, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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L.A. Notes: Lakers, Cook, Davis, George, Clippers

December 7th, 2020 at 11:02am CST by Luke Adams

According to a report from Ben Stinar of Forbes (Twitter link), the Lakers have sent home their players who don’t have guaranteed contracts as a coronavirus precaution in order to limit the number of people on the court during training camp.

The exact details here are a little unclear. The Lakers reportedly agreed to Exhibit 10 deals with undrafted rookies Zavier Simpson, Tres Tinkle, and Kevon Harris, but those signings haven’t been announced by the team and haven’t shown up in the league’s public transactions log, so it’s possible they simply won’t be officially finalized.

Meanwhile, Quinn Cook formally re-signed with the Lakers on Friday, and Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that Cook received a non-guaranteed training camp contract. However, it doesn’t appear that Stinar’s report would apply to the veteran guard. Head coach Frank Vogel suggested on Sunday that he expects Cook to begin practicing later this week once he clears COVID-19 protocols, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets.

As we await more details on the Lakers’ camp roster, let’s round up a few more notes on the NBA’s two L.A. teams…

  • After signing a five-year contract with the Lakers, Anthony Davis explained that he felt more comfortable locking in a longer-term deal in part because of his injury history, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “I do have a little history with injuries, and a two-year deal, you kind of bet on yourself. … God forbid, knock on wood, something happens,” Davis said. “… I want to secure the most amount of years possible and be here long-term with this team, so I thought the five-year deal was best for me in my situation.”
  • After suggesting during an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast that Doc Rivers misused him last season and suggesting the Clippers failed to make adjustments during their second-round loss to Denver, Paul George walked those comments back a little on Friday, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN details. Rivers’ response, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer: “Hey, listen, I enjoyed coaching him. So not a lot to say there. (New Clippers coach) Ty Lue was sitting right next to me. So he better hope it’s not adjustments. It ain’t going to be much different.”
  • Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Clippers point guard Patrick Beverley said that he and his teammates are entering the season angry and looking to make up for their disappointing playoff showing. “The attitude around here is guys are pissed off,” Beverley said, according to Youngmisuk. “Which is good. We should be pissed off after our exit last year in the playoffs. … It is a little quieter workplace and guys are more locked in, more focused, and that is the way it should be.”
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Paul George: I Want To Retire A Clipper

December 4th, 2020 at 3:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Clippers forward Paul George is eligible to reach unrestricted free agency a year from now, but it doesn’t sound like he has any plans to jump ship. George told reporters today that he’s happy being home in Los Angeles and is “committed” to his current team.

“I want to retire a Clipper,” George said, per Ben Golliver of The Washington Post (Twitter link). “I’ll say that every year. This is where my heart is.”

The Clippers are George’s third NBA team, and he eventually asked his first two teams – the Pacers and Thunder – to trade him. So it’s fair to take his comments today with a grain of salt.

Still, George is a Southern California native and had long wanted to play in L.A. Unless the 2020/21 season ends in even worse fashion for the Clippers than ’19/20 did, there’s no reason at this point to expect the six-time All-Star to seek a new home in free agency — few other teams could realistically offer him a better shot at winning a title in the coming years.

George averaged 21.5 PPG and 5.7 RPG in 48 regular season games in his first season as a Clipper in 2019/20. Those numbers were his lowest in five years, but he was also coming off shoulder surgery and was limited to 29.6 minutes per contest, his lowest-full season average since his rookie year. He’s believed to be 100% entering this year’s training camp.

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Pacific Notes: LeBron, Davis, Fox, Bogdanovic, Clippers

December 2nd, 2020 at 4:57pm CST by Luke Adams

LeBron James‘ decision to sign a contract extension with the Lakers isn’t related to Anthony Davis‘ free agency, sources tell ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. As Windhorst explains, if James hadn’t negotiated an extension and Davis signed a one-plus-one deal in free agency, the two superstars could’ve reached the open market together in 2021 and the Lakers could’ve explored ways to re-sign both players will adding another star.

However, James wasn’t interested in going that route, according to Windhorst, who says the reigning Finals MVP is confident the team will continue to spend and attract top talent. LeBron prioritized his own long-term earnings over helping the Lakers remain as flexible as possible.

Davis, meanwhile, is still mulling how to structure his contract and is making his decision independent of James, writes Windhorst. The star big man is also looking to maximize his future earnings and is researching scenarios and possible cap increases as he considers the best way to do so.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

  • After signing a maximum-salary extension with the Kings last week, De’Aaron Fox said on Tuesday that he loves playing in Sacramento and wants to help turn the team into a contender, says James Ham of NBC Sports California. “I want to be able to bring wins to this city, bring wins to this franchise,” Fox said. “I’m very happy that we have that commitment and we have that trust in each other. But now, it’s about winning. I think that’s what it’s always been about.”
  • In a separate story for NBC Sports California, Ham writes that the Kings‘ relatively quiet offseason was one factor that motivated Bogdan Bogdanovic to leave Sacramento. “Since (the Kings) didn’t do any moves in the offseason, I was like, ‘OK, I’m ready to leave,'” Bogdanovic told reporters today. “And I was really excited about Atlanta.”
  • Asked about the possibility of signing Paul George and Luke Kennard to extensions, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank didn’t offer any info on possible contract talks, but said the team views both players as “long-term Clippers,” according to Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
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Pacific Notes: Clippers, Batum, Hield, Suns, Warriors

December 2nd, 2020 at 10:12am CST by Luke Adams

In a fascinating, in-depth article for The Athletic, Jovan Buha takes a deep dive into the chemistry issues that plagued the Clippers during the 2019/20 season, exploring the club’s leadership void and various players’ grievances with the preferential treatment that star forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George received.

While Buha and others have reported about the Clippers’ locker room issues throughout the year, the latest Athletic story includes more specific details, including many of the perks provided to Leonard and George that irked teammates and compromised the positive culture that players bought into during the previous two seasons.

According to Buha, the two stars had power over the Clippers’ practice and travel schedule. Additionally, teammates believed Leonard and George were allowed to pick and choose when they played (not just sitting out games, but manipulating their playing time within games).

There are too many specific stories and details in Buha’s report to pass along all of them, but the upshot is that the Clippers are hoping new head coach Tyronn Lue – with the help of new roster additions like Serge Ibaka – will be able to address many of those issues, putting a greater emphasis on accountability. Sources tell The Athletic that players are excited to play for Lue and that Leonard and George are aware they must “establish a healthier locker room dynamic” in 2020/21.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

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Tyronn Lue Expects Kawhi Leonard, Paul George To Stay With Clippers

October 25th, 2020 at 9:57am CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers believe Kawhi Leonard and Paul George will be the foundation of the team for years, new head coach Tyronn Lue said during an appearance on ESPN’s “The Jump” (video link from show host Rachel Nichols).

Both stars have the ability to opt out next summer if they want to become part of what is expected to be a loaded free agent class. George’s player option for 2021/22 is $37.9MM, while Leonard’s is $36MM. However, Lue is confident that both Los Angeles natives will remain with the organization.

“I think Kawhi and PG are here to stay for a long time,” he said. “I think in their situation and where they want to be, it’s here with the Clippers. We just have to make it a great environment and we have to win.”

Lue also discussed how it feels to become a head coach again for the first time since the Cavaliers fired him six games into the 2018/19 season. Lue, who served as lead assistant to Doc Rivers last season, was rumored to be a candidate for several openings this year, including the Sixers, Nets, Pelicans and Rockets.

“It felt great to be wanted,” he said. “After the Cleveland situation and just having the chance to take a step back and reflect on things I could have done better, what I need to get better at, what I need to do to be better. I want to be great. I want to win championships. That’s what I want to do. So it takes a lot of work to do that.”

Lue said he is healthier now and better able to deal with stress than he was during his time in Cleveland. He experienced chest pains late in the 2017/18 season and had to take a short break from coaching to deal with his health. Lue told Nichols that he has lost 35 pounds since then and has learned how manage stress.

“Just having the chance to focus on myself, working out, eating better, doing some meditation here and there,” he explained. “Just learning to have a release outside of basketball. Because when I dive into coaching, it’s just all basketball. I’m up for the challenge. I feel great. No health issues, none of that. So I’m ready for the long run.”

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