Clippers President Reveals Truth About Paul George Contract Dispute

Paul George claims the Clippers gave him a disrespectful first offer.

Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

The breakup between Paul George and the LA Clippers is a very ugly one, filled with plenty of finger-pointing. Paul George believes that the Clippers disrespected him with an initial re-signing offer of 2 years, $60 million. The Clippers are claiming that's not the case.

LA Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank was asked about Paul George's claims, where Frank revealed that the Clippers offered an additional $50 million to that first offer. Paul George's first offer with the LA Clippers was three years, $110 million, not just $60 million.

"Not speaking for Paul, but the number he probably didn't include was the first number was his is opt-in number at $50 million," Frank said. "So, $50 million plus $60, so it was $110, and this was all prior to getting that heavy lifter. Once we got James [Harden], without anyone asking for anything more, for both Kawhi and PG, the offers both of them went significantly higher. Still, managing max cap space in 26-27 and being out of the second apron in 25-26. The goal was to get you as much money as possible, but we still have to add to the team."

Lawrence Frank confirmed Paul George was initially offered two years / $60M, but that was in addition to his $50M player option.

Frank said the Clippers then upped their offer to PG without asking once they added James Harden. pic.twitter.com/saShF7akoe

— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) July 15, 2024

The biggest point that Frank stressed to both the media and Paul George was the fact that the Clippers couldn't sign George to the number he wanted without getting past the second apron. The team wouldn't be able to improve and would remain the same fourth-seeded team that just lost in the first round last season - which George deserves plenty of fault for.

"We're trying to win a championship, that's why we brought this group together. That's why we gave up so much to get Paul and Kawhi," Frank said. "The unfortunate part of it, we only had one healthy postseason. That's not anybody's fault, but that's the reality, so we're going to have to add another major player to the group."

The 2024-25 NBA season could either be a very pleasantly surprising one, or an incredibly rough one for the Clippers. They've made some great additions to the team, but it's very clear that the team needs a third star with the combination of Kawhi Leonard's age and injury history.

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