What's Next for LA Clippers' Free Agents After Elimination?
Defensive powerhouse Utah Jazz has routed the Los Angeles Clippers in seven games of the National Basketball Association 2017 playoffs, and now, the team's soon-to-be free agents face the crossroads. July 1 marks the day that Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, and J.J. Redick become free agents, much to the dread of faithful Clippers fans. Will the team's core stay together even after this first-round elimination?
This upcoming free agency will make or break the Los Angeles Clippers organization in what could be "the most pivotal point in franchise history," as summed up by Bleacher Report. Even if the team and its owners are willing to do all that it takes to keep its stars, it will be a very expensive decision to essentially keep a team that could not even make it past the first round of the playoffs.
The Clippers, for their part, will not hesitate to sign new contracts with Griffin, Paul, and Redick. Team owner Steve Ballmer is not entertaining the notion of blowing the team up for a rebuild when he said "I love those guys, and I want those guys back," when asked by ESPN about the team's free agents.
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Even the huge luxury tax bill that comes with signing the three stars does not faze Ballmer in the slightest, it would seem. "If we're in it and we're playing for a championship, I don't mind the tax," Ballmer said.
Chris Paul will be due a $200 million contract for five years given this year's cap situation. That could be enough to persuade him to stay with the Clippers, along with the six seasons that he had invested into the team. J.J. Redick, however, has not been positive about the team's chances for a championship for some time now.
"Maybe you make the second round, maybe you make the conference finals, or even the Finals, but you're not quite good enough. But I don't think that's the aspiration here, so the question becomes: Can our group get over the hump?" Redick told ESPN.
