Understanding Every Option the LA Clippers Have With Paul George

Paul George has opted out of his contract with the LA Clippers and will become a free agent

Apr 9, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; LA Clippers forward Paul George (13) reacts during the fourth quarter of the game against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

It was announced on Saturday by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski that LA Clippers star Paul George planned to decline his 2024-25 player option and become an NBA free agent. After days of trade rumors involving the Golden State Warriors, it seemed an opt-in and trade scenario was a real possibility for George, but that is now off the table.

Following the news that George had opted out, it was reported several places (including by myself) that a trade of any kind was no longer a possibility. This understanding left just two remaining scenarios: George re-signing with the Clippers or leaving them outright in free agency. Technically, this is incorrect.

ESPN's Bobby Marks detailed two additional possibilities in a post on Sunday, both of which include sign and trade scenarios:

Updated LA Clippers

4 scenarios that will play out:

🏀George will sign with the Clippers

🏀George will sign with a team w/room

🏀George will do a sign-and-trade with a room team, allowing LAC to create a large trade exception. The acquiring team is hard capped at the $178.7M… pic.twitter.com/GKyrVRWjJR

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 29, 2024

An expert on the league's new very complicated CBA, Marks revealed there are indeed four possible outcomes for George. In order to get a better understanding of each possibility that remains for George and the Clippers, I reached out to Marks who broke down why a sign and trade is not impossible, but very unlikely.

According to Marks, the Clippers can technically sign and trade George to a team like the 76ers and create a trade exception, but they would be unable to receive anything in return without triggering the apron. Additionally, Marks said a team like Philadelphia would be unlikely to agree to such a deal because it would hard cap them.

This already unlikely scenario becomes even more unlikely when trying to trade with a non-cap space team. For this example, Marks used a hypothetical sign and trade that lands George in Golden State for Chris Paul, Moses Moody, and Jonathan Kuminga. According to Marks, such a deal would not work because Golden State triggers the first apron.

In addition to the complications a George sign and trade would cause for the team acquiring him, the Clippers also have major restrictions in these scenarios. For example, in the Paul, Moody, and Kuminga for George sign and trade hypothetical, the Clippers become hard capped at the second apron, making it difficult to re-sign James Harden.

Because of the CBA's unforgiving nature, a sign and trade for George would be nearly impossible to facilitate. This is why despite a trade still technically being an option, it is reasonable to assume a George departure would leave the Clippers with nothing in return for the player they traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, five first round picks, and two pick swaps for.