The Clippers today with 3 years 1$5.2 billion renewed Leonard's contract ahead of schedule, for a star of Leonard's level, this contract is still about 10 million away from the maximum salary, and the star of the house has reduced his salary to renew the contract, and other stars have also done this operation, usually to renew another superstar in the team, and this superstar is often the third big man or the sixth man of the team, it should be obvious who to point to.
That's right, James Harden.
Since George's contract, like Leonard, expires next year and has a player option, the Clippers' next step will definitely be to renew George early, and the contract amount should be roughly not much different from Leonard's.
The contracts of the main rotation players such as Westbrook, Zubac, Hyland (team option), Mann, and Theis (team option) all expire in 2025, and only Harden's contract expires this season.
Taking 10,000 steps back, even if the early contract extension with George is not negotiated, then 2025 will be the last chance for the Clippers, and the 34-year-old Harden will probably get a 3-year 100 million to 1200 million contract (I guess), if the Clippers don't even enter the West this season, then next season is the last fight of the Clippers, these veterans will also go their separate ways to fight for their pension contracts, and the Clippers are facing the renewal of so many players, and the lineup will inevitably change, and some players have to give up.
The Galaxy Fleet has been formed for so many years, and it has fallen on injury problems every year, this year, at least for now, is the best year, if it does not show championship-level competitiveness this year, then I personally think that Harden will leave, and George will also implement the player option to change the environment if he fails to renew his contract in advance, Harden and George are different from Leonard, Leonard has two championships in hand, and his historical status is basically stable, and Harden George, as a superstar in the first echelon of the NBA, is now desperate for a championship in his twilight years.
The Clippers management also knows this, so Leonard is better to negotiate than the other two, George's early contract extension negotiations, if I personally stand on George's position, I will not choose to renew the contract early, but make a decision after this season is the right decision to attack, retreat and defend.
Therefore, the reality of the Clippers determines that basically next season is the deadline for the Clippers to win the championship, unless the Clippers can exchange the superstar in their hands for another super-giant star to prolong the championship period.