Kirby Lee- USA Today Sports
Ever since the Los Angeles Clippers choked away their 3-1 series lead to the Houston Rockets, the rumblings that DeAndre Jordan could decide to leave the team in free agency have grown louder.
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Doc Rivers, head coach and President of Basketball Operations for the Clippers, confirmed on Thursday the team will offer their center a max contract in an effort to keep him around for the next five years.
Will the Clippers offer DeAndre Jordan a max contract? Doc: “Yeah, I think I can say that.”
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) May 18, 2015
Jordan certainly has his weaknesses and limitations, but he’s still worth every bit of a max contract in today’s NBA. He’s the best interior defender in the entire league and one of the premiere offensive rebounders in the game.
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Including Jordan, the Clippers had two players named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team, but defense was a major issue and the key reason why they ended up losing the series against the Rockets. Without their dominant interior presence, the Clippers could kiss any chance they had at winning the Western Conference goodbye for at least the next few years.
The Clippers have a major advantage over every other team when it comes to Jordan’s free agency. They’ll be able to offer a five-year, $109 million contract. The biggest offer another team could make would be for four-years and $81 million.
Seth Lassen is a writer for RantSports. ‘Like’ him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter @Seth_Lassen.
