James Harden, Paul George Coy on Clippers Future After Loss amid Contract Rumors

Heading into an offseason of uncertainty, Paul George and James Harden were mum on their futures with the Los Angeles Clippers.

In the aftermath of Friday's 114-101 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 6 of the Western Conference playoff series, both players said they haven't given much thought to their contracts.

"I don't even know," Harden told reporters. "You are asking a lot of questions that I don't have the answer to or haven't even thought about."

George said he's "not even focused" on contract talks at this point.

"I got a lot to kind of digest myself, so I haven't even got to that yet. Look forward to kind of going back, just letting everything kind of decompress, talk to my family, be around family support and then address the next step... Yeah, it's just not where I'm there. I'm not there yet," he explained.

The Clippers already took care of Kawhi Leonard's deal when they signed him to a three-year, $153 million extension in January that ties him to the organization through the 2026-27 season.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Friday the Clippers' goal is to sign George and Harden to keep their star trio together, as well as extend head coach Tyronn Lue.

Per The Athletic's Sam Amick and Law Murray, the Clippers are expected to make "strong efforts" to keep both George and Harden in part because they know Leonard has been so susceptible to injuries at this stage of his career.

"The thinking, team sources say, is that a team built around the oft-injured Leonard simply must have as much elite talent as possible as a way of mitigating the seemingly inevitable injuries that have come to define this Clippers era," Amick and Murray wrote.

Amick and Murray also noted Clippers governor Steve Ballmer isn't necessarily looking to cut costs after the team's second consecutive loss in the first round of the playoffs:

"The same question that loomed so large back in November returned from the shadows and will be at the center of the Clippers' decision-making process this summer: Does Ballmer, the uber-competitive former Microsoft CEO who is far and away the wealthiest owner in all the NBA, still see enough light at the end of the tunnel with this group that he's willing to re-invest enough to keep it all together? The answer, team sources tell The Athletic, is a resounding yes."

George, like Leonard, was eligible to sign an extension with the Clippers at any point during the season. The nine-time All-Star has a $48.8 million player option for next season

One potential sticking point, per HoopsHype's Michael Scotto, is the Clippers didn't want to give George a deal worth more than what Leonard signed for. If they want to let other teams negotiate for them, it will likely come at the cost of a max deal.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst said on Friday's episode of Get Up that George is "at the top" of the Philadelphia 76ers' wish list this summer.

Per ESPN's Bobby Marks, the Clippers can offer George a four-year deal worth up to $221 million.

Harden's deal might be trickier to get done because it's unclear what he wants at this point. He made it clear that part of his frustration with Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey last year was his decision to back out of a verbal promise for a max contract.

According to Amick and Murray, the Clippers and Harden want to continue this partnership.

A knee injury kept Leonard out for the 12 of the final 14 Clippers' games between the end of the regular season and playoffs. He's only played in four of the team's past 19 postseason games since Game 5 of the 2021 Western Conference semifinals.

The Clippers finished fourth in the Western Conference this season with a 51-31 record. They were as high as the No. 2 seed for two days in February when all three of their stars were healthy.