“Align Paul George’s Contract With Kawhi”: Paul Pierce Advises Clippers to Run It Back for 3 More Years

This season was do-or-die for the Los Angeles Clippers, and they fell short once again. The Clippers got blown out in 6 games by this year’s Western Conference Champions, The Dallas Mavericks. With the Clippers failing to advance past the first round once again, concerns surrounding the team’s future with their superstar duo of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard have been called into question.

Out of the two superstar wings, George emerges as the more valuable asset, as PG13 has managed to remain available as injury concerns still plague Kawhi’s production with the team. That said, George recently turned down the option to sign an extension with the Clippers, resulting in speculations about a departure from Los Angeles for George.

But Boston Legend, Paul Pierce isn’t having any of it, the 46-year-old wants the Clippers to run it back with their superstar duo, even suggesting that the Clippers pay George the same money as they did to Leonard. Taking on his show, ‘Ticket and The Truth’ Pierce further added,

” I think I would just sign Paul George and line up his contract with Kawhi’s. So if he got three years, I would give PG three years and see where we are at. I don’t know if I’d give him five. I would align their contracts up…you can give him three years, $150 million.”

During his rant, Pierce made a pertinent point about the current state of the free-agency market, pointing out how, besides George, there are no other two-way wings that can complement a player like Kawhi Leonard, and help him win a chip.

Another factor that seems to be working in George’s favour is the fact that Clippers owner Steve Balmer recently spent a fortune building the Los Angeles side’s new stadium, ‘the Intuit Dome’, and without George, Balmer might have a hard time filling the seats in his stadium when it opens.

For Pierce, the only thing holding back the Clippers is their lack of player availability and health, and ‘The Truth’ believes that the roster is good enough to run it back for three more years. Denver legend Kenyon Martin doesn’t agree with his Celtic peer, Martin thinks it’s time for George to depart from this Los Angeles team.

Kenyon Martin wants Paul George to leave the Clippers

The duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George linked up for the first time in 2019, both joining the Los Angeles Clippers in hopes of bringing the once-forgotten team its first NBA Championship. Fast forward five years, and everyone is calling for the Clippers to be quickly disbanded.

Even Denver legend Kenyon Martin believes that the experiment in Los Angeles has failed. Appearing on the show ‘Gil’s Arena’, the former All-Star advised Paul George to go fishing for other teams over the summer, further declaring that,

“This experiment has been going on for six years now with two older guys [Kawhi Leonard & Paul George] that’s not gone work… If I’m Paul, I’m looking for a different situation.”

“This experiment has been going on for six years now with two older guys [Kawhi Leonard & Paul George] that’s not gone work…If I’m Paul, I’m looking for a different situation.”

Kenyon Martin on Paul George & The Clippers pic.twitter.com/ODL3bJRSV2

— Gil’s Arena (@GilsArenaShow) May 29, 2024

As things currently stand, Paul George appears to be in a favourable position in the trade negotiations between him and the Clippers. The 34-year-old’s name has come up in multiple trade rumours over the past season, with teams like the Philadelphia 76ers monitoring George’s free-agency situation very closely.