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Rumor: Jerry West was hired to help the LA Clippers lure LeBron James

By Ryan Snellings

Jun 19, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Jerry West speaks to the media after he was officially hired by the Los Angeles Clippers as a special consultant at the team's practice facility in Playa Vista. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 19, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Jerry West speaks to the media after he was officially hired by the Los Angeles Clippers as a special consultant at the team's practice facility in Playa Vista. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
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According to the USA Today, Jerry West was hired by the LA Clippers to help the team attract LeBron James next summer.

Jerry West’s hiring started off what looks to be quite a wild offseason. However, his hiring might not be for this offseason, but instead the next. Supposedly, the LA Clippers brought him in to help lure LeBron James when he is due to hit free agency in 2018.

Sam Amick of USA Today reported:

"According to two people with knowledge of the situation, West’s potential ability to improve the Clippers’ chances of landing the Cleveland Cavaliers star in free agency in the summer of 2018 was a significant factor in his hiring and in the willingness of owner Steve Ballmer to pay West between $4 and $5 million annually."

This could bode well for the Clips, who could potentially lose Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick this summer. If Jerry West is intended to bring LeBron James, there’s good reason to believe that he could help convince Chris Paul to stay. CP3 has always wanted to play with his buddy LeBron and what better place than LA?

OPINION: How Jerry West can fix the Clippers

Amick also points out that the “banana boat” could start to form this year:

"There’s the Carmelo Anthony situation that hasn’t gone anywhere over these past few months. A scenario remains possible where J.J. Redick, via a sign-and-trade, would be sent along with another Clippers player to the Knicks in exchange for Anthony, who is also close friends with James and Paul."

With Jerry West now on board, the LA Clippers can look to make some big moves. Bringing in LeBron James and possibly Carmelo Anthony would definitely be considered “big”. However, there is a lot of uncertainty in the league. Teams seem to be panicking in the wake of Golden State’s dominant run. We may just have to be patient and wait until next summer to see if the Clips can make the correct moves.

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