BJ Mathews is the host of the THE PULL UP! Basketball Podcast. He is a Clippers credentialed creator representing thePeachBasket. In this article, Did the Clippers Make the Right Call Trading Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? Revisiting the Paul George Deal Five Years Later, he looks back at the SGA trade.
“It is easy to follow the crowd, but it takes courage to stand alone.” This quote is attributed to Mahatma Gandhi. Currently, the subject is being brought back up pertaining to a trade from five years ago. Should the Los Angeles Clippers have traded away current MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander?
In the summer of 2019, the entire NBA world was shaken up. The Clippers sent off Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari, and seven picks for Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Paul George. In addition, the Clippers were able to lure in free agent Kawhi Leonard, who had just come off a championship with the Toronto Raptors. Multiple reports said that it was a two-team race between the Raptors and Los Angeles Lakers for obtaining Leonard, but the “fun guy” had other plans. As the story unveiled, Leonard was for the Clippers to lose, guaranteeing privately he would come aboard on one condition, and that’s retaining a “second star.”
Gilgeous-Alexander, who is now participating in the Western Conference Finals with the Thunder, has forced fans to rethink the past. What could’ve been if the Clippers hadn’t dealt away the young, upcoming star for a current star and top 10 player? Well, the first thing is Leonard would most likely not have been a Clipper. After coming off that championship with the Raptors, Leonard could see the way the league was shaping back to dynamic duos; it was going to be a stretch for him to win without a second star.
As good as Gilgeous-Alexander has been within the last three seasons, he is a player who had to grow through his development, and that was simply not going to happen with the Clippers still competing for a championship. Not to mention, Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank won Executive of the Year in large part because of this move that was so bad. The truth is, Leonard and Gilgeous-Alexander were on two different timelines; that is where George comes in.
In an interview with Rachel Nichols, many things were revealed about the two-way duo. Both have Southern California roots, attended mid-major colleges, and both came to play for the Clippers to have the opportunity to be near family. There is a strong connection here that sort of flies under the radar—how close of a relationship these two have.
Within the interview, Leonard revealed he tried to get the San Antonio Spurs to obtain George, but ultimately, he went to the Thunder. So, when the opportunity presented itself again, this time Leonard was going to do everything in his power to get the job done, even if it meant getting off Gilgeous-Alexander, who was a rookie. So, the trade was made.
Since that trade, much has changed for both teams. The Clippers, who were a team looking to contend for a championship, have declined. In contrast, the Thunder, who were rebuilding for a period within the last two seasons, now look like a title contender. When the Clippers agreed to do the deal to get Leonard and George aboard, the objective was to win a championship.
In the five seasons together, they held a record of 137-70, which is a 66.2% winning percentage. When comparing that to other star duos in the league with that number of games played together, that is considered “elite.” However, the Clippers were never able to reach the Finals; the closest they got to their goal was a conference finals appearance back in 2021.
In their five-year span, Leonard and George only completed one playoff run together, and that was back in the bubble. The injury bug seemed to hit at the wrong time every year. Who could’ve predicted it? What can you do? The quick answer is the Clippers shouldn’t have traded their young star to begin with, but when you look at the time Leonard and George were together, is that really a true statement?
Looking at Gilgeous-Alexander’s tenure with the Thunder, it hasn’t all been great. From 2020-2023, the Thunder didn’t make the playoffs. That same player that fans urged could’ve been Leonard’s co-star, or could do as George did—get the Clippers to their first ever conference finals without Leonard—is nonsense. The Thunder did something that many seem to miss: why they are the team you see today revolves around the multiple picks they received in the trade.
The long route that the Thunder took to be a number one seed the last two years has proven to pay off. Choosing to build their team through draft capital and young players, then relying on star power while holding deficiencies to their roster. That is the process the Thunder took to build around Gilgeous-Alexander. Like what the Golden State Warriors did: the core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green became a dynasty off the same values. Yes, they grabbed Kevin Durant for two championships, but they also beat Durant and proved they could still win two championships without him.
In the Leonard and George era, the only season that the Thunder finished with a better record than the Clippers was the 2023-24 season. Last offseason, the departure of George took a turn for the worse, where it looks like the trade was a failure. Such a question should’ve only been asked at the beginning of this season when George left. Instead, this has been a discussion in NBA circles for the last couple of seasons due to Gilgeous-Alexander’s growth.
The Clippers decided to go with the timeline of competing for a championship rather than passing up on it and risking the chance of losing Leonard entirely. The Clippers not winning their title—you can look at many things, but the biggest thing to look at is injuries and unfortunate luck, not a trade.
After a win back in January 2024 against the Thunder, George echoed that “both sides won the trade.” When looking back on it, that seems to be more of a realistic claim. In the Leonard-George era, the Clippers were being taken seriously as a title contender when healthy. Prior to that, the Clippers went from being a laughingstock to an average team that never reached past the second round in their entire history. While they didn’t reach their goal of winning a championship, they were trending upwards, not downwards. The Thunder are reaping the harvest of their patience; it looks like they have not only found their MVP, but a young core who is ahead of their time.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!
For any NBA team looking for a young center to add some frontcourt help, one just hit the open market. After signing a two-year contract at the end of the 2024-25 season, the Toronto Raptors have waived Colin Castleton, a 25-year-old center. "The Toronto Raptors announced Monday they have waived centre Colin Castleton," the team announced. "In 26 games (four starts) with Memphis, Philadelphia and Toronto last season, Castleton averaged 4.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 16.6 minutes. He signed consecutive 10-day contracts with the Raptors in March before signing a standard NBA contract Apr. 13, the final day of the regular season." Castleton went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft, but was picked up by the Los Angeles Lakers. Through 16 appearances with the Lakers in his rookie year, Castleton averaged 1.5 points and 0.8 rebounds in just 3.7 minutes per game, but had a more productive sophomore campaign. To start the 2024-25 season, the Memphis Grizzlies signed Castleton to a two-way contract before waiving him, and he went on to earn a handful of ten-day deals with the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers. Castleton shined in just an 11-game stint with the Raptors last season, averaging 7.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game in two ten-day contract opportunities. Now, the 6-foot-11 big man hits the open market and could certainly earn a two-way spot elsewhere, or revert to the G League, where he stood out last season. However, an underwhelming 2025 Summer League with Toronto may turn some teams away.
Treylon Burks‘ tenure in Tennessee is on track to come to an end. In the wake of his latest injury, the former first-rounder has been waived. This move has come with an injury designation, which comes as no surprise given the broken collarbone Burks recently suffered in training camp. Injuries have plagued the 25-year-old throughout his brief NFL tenure, which began when Tennessee selected him with the No. 18 pick in the 2022 draft. That selection was acquired by dealing A.J. Brown to the Eagles. Given the link between the two wideouts created by the trade, Burks’ evaluations have always been measured against Brown’s Philadelphia success. During each of his three seasons with the Eagles so far, Brown has earned a Pro Bowl nod and second-team All-Pro acclaim; the 28-year-old was also a key figure in the team’s Super Bowl success in 2025. Burks, by contrast, entered this summer on Tennessee’s roster bubble. The Arkansas product managed a career-best 444 yards as a rookie while being limited to 11 games. Optimism was high that, with better luck on the health front, he could round out his game and develop into a regular on offense with the Titans. Staying on the field has proven to be an issue, however — Burks missed six games again in 2023 and an ACL tear limited him to five contests last season — and when available he has not managed to meet expectations. The collarbone injury accelerated the timing for what could have been a decision to move on from the Titans closer to the start of the regular season. Tennessee’s receiver depth chart will once again be headlined by Calvin Ridley this season. Veteran Tyler Lockett was added in free agency, as was Van Jefferson. The Titans used the draft to add a pair of Day 3 prospects at the position (Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor), and they will look to handle backup roles during their rookie seasons. Tennessee entered Monday with nearly $30M in cap space, so finances will not be an issue if one of the veterans still on the market is targeted in the wake of this move. Burks is now headed to waivers, with all teams free to claim him. Provided he goes unclaimed, he will revert to injured reserve. Situations such as these often result in a release being worked out along with an injury settlement. If that proves to be the case for Burks, his Titans stint will end on an unwanted but unsurprising note.
The Boston Red Sox got some bad news in the infield. Rookie infielder Marcelo Mayer has gotten a lot of time at second base and third base. Since Alex Bregman returned, Mayer has gotten most of his action at second base while also filling in as the Red Sox worked Bregman back slowly. Unfortunately, he's on the Injured List, though, due to a wrist sprain. MassLive.com's Christopher Smith shared the lastest update on Mayer from Red Sox manager Alex Cora on Saturday noted that he's "not gonna play soon." "No new updates on Marcelo Mayer's wrist sprain, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said," Smith shared. "'Just waiting for results and see specialists and all that stuff,' Cora added. 'He's not gonna play soon. So have to make sure where we're at and what the course of action is going to be.'" Losing Mayer is tough. Defense has been a question mark for Boston once again this season but Mayer has helped in that area. With Mayer out, Ceddanne Rafaela is expected to get a lot of action at second base. That helps to alleviate the logjam in the outfield, but also removes arguably the best defensive center fielder in the game. Boston isn't at full strength and Cora noting he's "not gonna play soon" certainly doesn't sound positive. Before going down, Mayer was slashing .228/.272/.402 with four homers, 10 RBIs, and eight doubles. Will the Red Sox add another piece ahead of the trade deadline? It absolutely makes sense at this point.
One of the biggest storylines in the NFL this offseason was the decision the Green Bay Packers made to release two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander. Last year, the former first-round pick played in just seven games due to various injuries, including a torn PCL that cost him all but 10 snaps of the second half of the season. The year prior, he played just seven games as well due to other injuries. In other words, out of the past 34 possible regular season games, Alexander played in just 14 of them. Dating back to 2021, he played in just 34 out of a possible 68 regular season games, with 2022 being the only season in which he played more than seven contests. According to prior reports, Green Bay and Alexander disagreed on how his knee injury last season should be treated. This led to a fracture in their relationship and, eventually, the cornerback’s release. Former Green Bay Packers Cornerback Jaire Alexander Signed with the Baltimore Ravens Prior to his release, Alexander and the Packers had engaged in talks over a revised contract that would lower his salary cap hit and allow him to become a free agent following this upcoming season. However, he did not agree to Green Bay’s terms, and since no NFL team wanted to offer up draft capital in a trade for him, the Packers were forced to release him. Not only was this development a disappointment to fans, among whom Alexander was a favorite player, but it sparked concern that would join one of Green Bay’s NFC North division rivals. Instead, though, Alexander signed a one-year $6 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens. He had previously been linked to them due to the fact that he and two-time NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson were teammates in college. Former Green Bay Packers Cornerback Jaire Alexander Missed Baltimore Ravens Practice with a Knee Injury Unfortunately for Alexander and the Ravens, the injury concerns that the Packers had regarding the star cornerback seem to have reappeared in Baltimore. According to multiple reporters, the two-time Pro Bowler did not practice on Monday due to swelling in his knee: Alexander is getting his knee drained and is expected to practice on Tuesday. But even though it is just one practice and he is just supposed to miss one day, the fact of the matter is that his knee will never be the same. This will be an injury that will affect him for the rest of his career, and could cause him to miss time during the season. While an unpopular decision among many, perhaps releasing Alexander was the right move for the Packers after all.