JaVale McGee calls his self-appointed nickname “Pierre” his alter ego.
“He’s arrogant, conceited, all the bad things that I shouldn’t be,” McGee said.
Well then, Pierre must be planning a massive party after the Los Angeles Clippers decided to match the four-year, $43 million offer sheet that DeAndre Jordan signed with the Golden State Warriors.
Like McGee, Jordan is a 7-footer who does his best work as close to the basket as possible. Like McGee, Jordan’s production (7.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.8 blocks a game last year) is more a measure of his potential than an accurate gauge of his current value. And like McGee, Jordan is headed into his fourth NBA season.
That means the market looks to be set quite nicely for McGee, who is eligible for a contract extension this season before becoming a restricted free agent at the end of the year. The potential of a jump to an eight-figure salary from the $2.5 million he’s set to earn this year (prorated to just shy of $2 million due to the shortened season) helps explain why the Wizards have decided against spending freely in the free agent market this year.
It also provides plenty of incentive to leave Pierre off the basketball court, away from where he could persuade the good McGee into taking off on a point guard-style dribbling exhibition down the floor.
“It definitely influences how well I’ll perform this year,” McGee said. “But I feel like even if I don’t perform well and I help the team to wins and am a part of that, it’ll still look good.”
– Craig Stouffer
