Los Angeles Clippers Players' Salaries For The 2022-23 NBA Season

The Los Angeles Clippers should be a contending team next season, and many people believe they are the favorites to win it all. during the 2022-23 season The team will be getting superstar Kawhi Leonard back from his ACL injury, and he has shown that he can win a championship as the No. 1 option on a team in 2019 with the Toronto Raptors. Paul George is still an elite two-way superstar in the game, and he is still playing at an All-NBA level. The Clippers also have some elite role players on the roster, and in general, having a deep team surrounding two superstars is a recipe for championship success.

Generally, contending teams have a high salary bill due to them paying key players to keep them on the roster. That is no different for the Los Angeles Clippers, who have a lot of money owed to both superstars and role players. Here is how the salaries for all the Los Angeles Clippers’ players look for the 2022-23 season. (via HoopsHype)

Paul George – $42,492,568

Kawhi Leonard – $42,492,492

Norman Powell – $16,758,621

Marcus Morris – $16,372,093

Luke Kennard – $13,745,455

Robert Covington – $12,307,692

Reggie Jackson – $11,215,260

Nicolas Batum – $10,843,350

Ivica Zubac – $10,123,457

John Wall – $6,479,000

Amir Coffey – $3,395,062

Terence Mann – $1,930,681

Moses Brown – $1,902,133

Xavier Moon – $1,637,966

BJ Boston – $1,563,518

Jason Preston – $1,563,518

Moussa Diabate – $508,891

Team Total – $195,331,757

Kawhi Leonard And Paul George Make Almost $85 Million In 2022-23

Paul George – $42,492,568

Kawhi Leonard – $42,492,492

Obviously, championships are won by superstars, and there is no surprise that Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are the highest-paid players on the Los Angeles Clippers. Both players are the kind of versatile forwards that are valuable in modern basketball, and both players provide contributions defensively and offensively. Both players make close to $42.5 million.

Paul George is generally considered one of the most skilled players in the game. Offensively, Paul George has a smooth perimeter game that features shot creation from both the midrange area and from beyond the arc. George is also one of the best playmakers at his position as well. On the defensive side, George is known as an elite perimeter defender that can successfully switch onto a player of any position besides center. This past season with the Los Angeles Clippers, Paul George averaged 24.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 5.7 APG.

While Paul George is a fantastic player, Kawhi Leonard is the player that is most commonly seen as the face of the Los Angeles Clippers franchise. He missed the 2021-22 season with an ACL injury that he sustained against the Utah Jazz in the 2021 playoffs, but when healthy, Kawhi Leonard is truly a transcendent player. Leonard is an absolute force on both ends of the floor and can shoulder a team’s offense while also providing DPOY-caliber perimeter defense in spurts. On offense, he can score from anywhere on the court but is most notably known for his midrange shot creation and rim finishing. During the 2020-21 season, Kawhi Leonard put up 24.8 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 5.2 APG.

Starters And Key Role Players

Norman Powell – $16,758,621

Marcus Morris – $16,372,093

Luke Kennard – $13,745,455

Robert Covington – $12,307,692

Reggie Jackson – $11,215,260

Nicolas Batum – $10,843,350

Ivica Zubac – $10,123,457

John Wall – $6,479,000

The Los Angeles Clippers’ role players are all good players that fill specific needs, They have a number of role players that make $10-17 million annually, and those contracts can likely be combined to match a max-level contract in a potential trade for a star-level player.

John Wall, Ivica Zubac, and Norman Powell will probably start next to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. John Wall is the kind of playmaking point guard that fits well next to the two superstars, and he’s a good defender at the point guard position as well. Norman Powell will likely provide additional scoring and floor spacing in the starting lineup. Powell can be a pest defensively against guards and is also able to guard some small forwards. Ivica Zubac will probably start at the center position as the team’s best traditional big man. However, he probably won’t be the closing center, as the Los Angeles Clippers often turn to small-ball in the fourth quarter.

Nicolas Batum and Robert Covington are both elite 3 and D players who can guard all five positions effectively, and either can be a small-ball center for the team. Luke Kennard is a player that provides elite 3PT shooting but does not particularly excel at other aspects of the game. Reggie Jackson will be the scoring sixth man off the bench, which is likely his optimal role on next season’s roster. Marcus Morris is a solid player that can play a number of roles off the bench but will likely be a physical enforcer that can also space the floor for the team. He would be a solid option if the Clippers ever needed to go big.

End-Of-The-Bench Role Players

Amir Coffey – $3,395,062

Terence Mann – $1,930,681

Moses Brown – $1,902,133

Xavier Moon – $1,637,966

BJ Boston – $1,563,518

Jason Preston – $1,563,518

Moussa Diabate – $508,891

The players at the end of the rotation are all on affordable contracts for the Los Angeles Clippers, with none of them having contracts that exceed $4 million. That means that they do not take up a ton of cap space, which is useful for a tax-paying team like the Clippers.

Out of this group, Terance Mann is the player that is most likely to get rotational minutes, as he is a solid shooter and an elite perimeter defender. He will likely get pushed to the end of the rotation due to all the good veterans on the roster, but it is possible that Mann ends up earning minutes if some of the veterans don’t perform up to the high standards set by Ty Lue, or due to injuries.

Moses Brown gives the Los Angeles Clippers another traditional big man behind Ivica Zubac, and Amir Coffey projects as a solid spot-up shooter. They could be solid options for spot minutes in case of injury, and would likely get minutes in any blowout the Clippers have.

Xavier Moon, Jason Preston, BJ Boston, and Moussa Diabate will likely get limited minutes throughout the season with the Los Angeles Clippers, but they are players that can soak up minutes when the need arises.

What The Clippers Salary Cap Could Look Like Next Year And Going Forward

The Los Angeles Clippers have committed contracts to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George until the end of the 2024-25 season, although it must be noted that the last year on both players’ deals is a player option. The Los Angeles Clippers don’t have any long-term contracts besides Norman Powell’s extension past that season, and it seems safe to say that that year will likely be the end of an era for the Los Angeles Clippers.

With $195,331,757 committed in player salary, the Los Angeles Clippers have the second-highest payroll in the league, only trailing the 2022 champions, the Golden State Warriors. They are clearly in win-now mode, and it is quite likely that governor Steve Ballmer expects the team to win at least one title with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

There is no doubt that the Los Angeles Clippers have the ability to win it all. A win-now move could potentially improve their chances even further, and as mentioned previously, they could potentially package some of their role players in a consolidation trade. Marcus Morris is likely a prime candidate to be moved. That is both due to his tradeable contract, but also due to the Los Angeles Clippers having a large number of forwards on the roster. Marcus Morris’ skill set obviously overlaps with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard (midrange scoring in isolation, 3PT shooting).

It remains to be seen what the Los Angeles Clippers salary cap looks like in the future. The team winning a championship within the next season or two will likely determine how long the Kawhi Leonard – Paul George era lasts.

Los Angeles Clippers Players’ Salaries For The 2022-23 NBA Season

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