Another dicey situation involving the LA Clippers has been resolved this week.
An arbitrator has ruled against Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. in a dispute with his former agent Aaron Turner, veteran NBA writer Marc Stein reported on Wednesday. The ruling holds that Turner must receive his full 4 percent commission from the contract Jones signed with the Clippers last year (making for a total award of $1.2 million).
The 28-year-old Jones, a former NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion, was an impactful 3-and-D piece for the Dallas Mavericks during their 2024 NBA Finals run, starting all 22 games for them that postseason. As a result, Jones was able to secure a three-year, $30 million contract from the Clippers that offseason.
However, Jones decided to part ways with his agent Turner in the middle of free agent negotiations that year, choosing instead to sign with Rich Paul’s Klutch Sports. But the NBA collective bargaining agreement mandates a minimum waiting period of 15 days before formally switching agents, giving rise to the dispute between Jones and Turner after Jones agreed to his deal with the Clippers.
Jones lived up to that contract during his first season in Los Angeles, starting 55 games and averaging 10.1 points per game on 35.6 percent three-point shooting (both career-high marks). While Jones is not currently projected to start for the Clippers next season, he is still expected to be a key part of the rotation.
Meanwhile, the Clippers as an organization are under the microscope right now for a different reason. Allegations have emerged against owner Steve Ballmer and star player Kawhi Leonard claiming improper payments made to supposedly circumvent the NBA salary cap. The last that we heard of the saga was Ballmer publicly claiming that he got “conned” by the company involved in the allegations.
