NBA Hoops

Sources — Clippers’ Paul George opts out, entering free agency

Sources -- Clippers' Paul George opts out, entering free agency


LA Clippers star Paul George is declining his $48.7 million option and will enter free agency, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

George is planning to meet with teams that have enough salary cap space to potentially sign him, including the Clippers, beginning Sunday night, sources added.

With George declining his player option, the opt-in-and-trade scenario for him will no longer be possible.

George, 34, is coming off a season in which he played 74 regular-season games — his most since he was traded to the Clippers before the 2019-20 season.

The nine-time All-Star averaged 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists. He shot career-highs of 47.1% from the field, 41.3% from 3-point range and 90.7% from the free throw line. George also made 45% on catch-and-shoot 3’s, fourth-best among 117 players to attempt 200-plus of those shots according to Second Spectrum.

After the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard agreed to a three-year, $153-million extension in January, George was optimistic that he would have his own extension soon as well. George was eligible for an extension up to four years and $221 million.

But the two sides were unable to come to an agreement leading to George’s decision to become a free agent. George will be eligible to sign a four-year, $212 million contact with teams that have the cap space. He’s also eligible to sign up to a four-year, $221 million contract and negotiate a no-trade clause to remain with the Clippers. But he cannot sign a five-year contract with the Clippers because of the over-38 rule, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

“We love Paul,” Lawrence Frank, Clippers president of basketball operations, said on Thursday. “We very much want to retain Paul, but we also very much understand and respect the fact this is a business.

“We hope Paul’s decision is to be here. He’s been awesome. He’s been an All-Star. He’s one of the best two-way players in the league. He’s a terrific person. He’s got great family, so we hope he’s here but also respect the fact that if he chooses to opt out, that’s his choice. He’s earned it and we’ll see how things play out.”

George wanted to play with Leonard and asked to be traded from Oklahoma City to Los Angeles during the summer of 2019 to be close to family. He grew up in nearby Palmdale and his parents attend as many homes games as possible.

As the franchise moves into the new Intuit Dome this season, it hopes to keep Leonard and George together. In their five…

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