Los Angeles Clippers: Failed Tobias Harris extension is a telling sign

The Los Angeles Clippers and Tobias Harris failed to reach an agreement on a pretty hefty contract extension which is very telling of the team’s future.

We have been saying it for months here at LA Sports Hub: the Los Angeles Clippers are in one of the worst positions to be in as an NBA Franchise.

On Sunday, news broke that forward Tobias Harris turned down a contract extension offered by the Los Angeles Clippers. Harris was acquired as part of the Blake Griffin trade and arguably outplayed Griffin after the trade. He is in the final year of his contract.

The extension was reportedly worth $80 million. As talented as Harris is, the chances of another team offering him anything significantly more than this extension is slim. Plus, there is always the chance of injury this season that could derail a future big payday.

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Bottom line: this move was not a monetary decision. It was one that showcases the current status of the Los Angeles Clippers and why the front office’s plan is not going to work.

It proves that this micro rebuild, opening cap space for next summer hoping a star free agent wants to be a Clipper, simply will not work. Not only have the Clippers tarnished their own image, the team has not built anything close to what a contender would want.

There is no long-term security with the Clippers due to the several expiring contracts either in the next year or so. This would be fine if the team had a deep young core to promote, but they don’t. LA has a decent young backcourt in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jerome Robinson that still need to prove themselves.

Thus, if a superstar were to come to the Clippers they would be coming with essentially no help. With the Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James also having cap space, the Clippers become the second choice in LA by a country mile.

Most importantly, though, this showcased that the Clippers’ lack of loyalty may hurt the team’s chances at getting trust from their players. While this can heal over time, the immediate effects are obviously still being felt.

Griffin signed a max contract extension to stay in LA instead of jumping ship to a contender or even his hometown Oklahoma City Thunder. Half a year later and Griffin was traded to a team he probably had no interest in, the Detroit Pistons.

That move, even more than the DeMar DeRozan deal. showed that the front office views this as nothing but a business. They realized that Griffin’s contract could become restricting in a few years, so they dealt him.

Naturally, you would think this would signal a change of pace in Los Angeles but no.

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The Los Angeles Clippers instead are going to opt to try and convince talented players to join a team that instantly turned its back on one of the best players in the game. Tobias Harris realizes this, we realize it and the rest of the league likely realizes it as well.

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