In January, the Los Angeles Clippers signed Kawhi Leonard to a three-year extension worth up to $152.7 million. More than two months later, fellow All-Star Paul George has yet to follow suit.

George can become a free agent this summer by declining his $48.8 million player option for the 2024-25 season. He's eligible to sign an extension with the Clippers until June 30.

With the Philadelphia 76ers eyeing a serious offseason run at George, what's next for the soon-to-be 34-year-old?

Looming Sixers

Not many teams project to have significant spending power this summer, but Philadelphia is in a unique situation. The Sixers are a potential title contender with Joel Embiid healthy, and they're armed with what could be up to $65 million in cap room.

George could be one of the top players in this year's free-agent class (ranked No. 3 by B/R), but at his age, he isn't likely to be courted by rebuilding teams. According to multiple sources in and around the NBA, the Sixers have George at the top of their wish list and are expected to make him a significant offer if he becomes a free agent.

Would Philadelphia give him a four-year max deal worth a projected $212.2 million? That may be close to what it takes to get the L.A.-area native to relocate to the East Coast.

To get to that $49.4 million starting salary, the 76ers would need to initially wait on re-signing Tyrese Maxey (his cap hold as a free agent will be only $13 million) and pare their roster down to just Embiid. Everyone else is either a free agent or non-guaranteed (Paul Reed's $7.7 million salary in 2024-25 becomes guaranteed only if the team advances to the second round of the playoffs this year).

The Sixers could trade their first-round pick for future considerations in June, pushing their cap space to about $16.7 million left to spend after luring George, along with the $8 million room mid-level exception. That could be enough to keep a couple of rotation players like Buddy Hield, Kelly Oubre Jr., De'Anthony Melton or Reed. The rest of the roster would be fleshed out by minimum players and a second-round pick (likely from the Chicago Bulls).

Philadelphia would be gambling on getting on a few elite-level seasons with the Embiid/Maxey/George trio, hoping that the oft-injured Embiid and George hold up for at least one chance at an NBA title.

Clippers Can't Replace George

That potential offer from the Sixers gives George leverage with the Clippers.

Both George and Leonard are earning the same amount this season ($45.6 million). Both had player options for 2024-25 at $48.8 million, but Leonard opted out to sign a three-year extension worth $7.2 million below the max he could have received.

The Clippers and George can agree to a four-year extension worth up to $221.1 million up until June 30. George could also compromise as Leonard did and take less than the maximum he's allowed to receive in years or dollars. Otherwise, he could wait to become a free agent, but George can't receive more than $221.1 million from the Clippers because of the Over-38 Rule.

An extension, which pays George as much as he can get in free agency, would give him security and the Clippers clarity as they negotiate with James Harden and prepare to open the brand-new Intuit Dome in Inglewood for the 2024-25 season. However, the Clippers also have to be mindful of luxury taxes and restrictive aprons that will limit their flexibility for the foreseeable future. They'll have to ask themselves how long they can commit to financial hell.

The Leonard extension suggests that the answer is three more seasons, but that could lead to the Clippers having multiple future first-round picks "frozen," which drops their picks (years down the road) to the end of the first round.

If Harden re-signs starting at around $35 million, along with P.J. Tucker, who is expected to pick up his $11.5 million player option, the Clippers could near $210 million in team payroll, with a repeater tax in the $164 million range. Teams with a payroll that high can only sign external free agents to minimum contracts and can't take back more salary via trade than they send out, among other restrictions.

Many sources around the league think Clippers governor Steve Ballmer will eventually decide to pay up. The nuance may be in the number of years. A sign-and-trade wouldn't be legal for the Clippers. Even without George, the Clippers' payroll is high enough that the team has no real means to replace him if he leaves for the Sixers.

How much of a hometown discount will George give L.A.? There's a compromise to be made, but that may be difficult for George if Philadelphia offers a full four-year max and the Clippers stay at three. This could be George's last big NBA deal, so he might be willing to brave the cold weather for an extra $52.3 million.

George is finishing his fifth year in Los Angeles and is eligible for a no-trade clause in his next contract. Bradley Beal is the only player in the NBA with that privilege, and Beal had a significant say in where the Washington Wizards traded him this past summer. Would that be enough of a concession from the Clippers for George to turn down that kind of money from the 76ers? Or would L.A. shy away from giving George that much power?

The Clippers are focusing on their playoff chase in the West, but it's almost April. These decisions must be made by the end of June or the first days of July.

The smart money says George will stay in L.A., but the Sixers appear to be a genuine contender for his services.

Email Eric Pincus at eric.pincus@gmail.com and follow him on X/Twitter @EricPincus.