Los Angeles Clippers Free Agency: Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, J.J. Redick To Determine Team's Future

The 2017 NBA offseason will likely determine the future of the Los Angeles Clippers. With Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick all set to hit free agency, L.A. could either solidify their core for the next five seasons or lose their best players and be forced to rebuild.

The Clippers want to re-sign their free agents, and they’ll have the advantage of being able to offer them more money than any other team. Other factors will come into play, considering all three players will receive their share of offers from contending teams.

READ: Paul George Trade To Cavs Possible, Carmelo Anthony Could Become Option

Los Angeles is in the midst of its best stretch in franchise history. Ever since Paul arrived in 2012, the team has never missed the playoffs or posted a winning percentage below .600. But the team has just three postseason series victories with no appearances in the Western Conference Finals, and they aren’t good enough to compete with the Golden State Warriors.

If Paul bolts for another team, it will be for a better chance at winning a championship. L.A. is prepared to offer him the max contract of close to $200 million over five years, and the best another team can do is approximately $150 million over four seasons. The San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets are reportedly working to create salary cap space in order to take a run at the point guard, and both teams could probably put Paul one step closer towards finally having some success in the playoffs.

Only Golden State has had a better record than San Antonio in each of the last two years, though the Spurs never had much of a chance against the Warriors in the conference finals when Kawhi Leonard suffered a series-ending ankle injury. Houston had the third-best record this past season, and upgrading at point guard from Patrick Beverley to Paul would make them the biggest threat to the defending champs in the conference.

Houston is also expected to try and sign Griffin, who could be easier to sign than Paul. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor reports that the Clippers are highly unlikely to offer the forward the full max contract of five years worth close to $170 million. The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat are also expected to try and sign Griffin, and he might decide to head to the Eastern Conference if the contract offers are similar.

Even with LeBron James dominating the East for the last seven years, Griffin’s odds of reaching the NBA Finals would arguably increase significantly with Boston. The Celtics were the No.1 seed this past year, and there’s a chance that Boston will only have to deal with the NBA’s best player for one more year.

There is growing speculation that James could opt out of his contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2018 and head elsewhere, specifically to Los Angeles. The Lakers and Clippers would both be potential destinations for James, depending on the look of their rosters.

Even if Griffin is no longer in Los Angeles, a Clippers team that is led by Paul could still be an attractive option for James. James has talked about one day playing with his friends Paul and Carmelo Anthony, and that would be possible in L.A. Anthony can opt out of his contract next summer, as well, and the New York Knicks and Clippers have discussed trade scenarios in which Anthony would head out west.

READ: How Many People Watched The 2017 NBA Finals

As for Redick, he will reportedly get offers from the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers. He’d go from being the third option in L.A. to maybe the top scorer on a young team.

Free agents can officially agree to sign with new teams on July 1.