Forward Paul George believes that the Oklahoma City Thunder now feel like a championship team with the arrival of fellow All-Star Carmelo Anthony, who was traded by the Knicks for Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott, and a 2018 second-round pick. George, in an interview with USA Today Sports, said that he and Russell Westbrook are already in a good place, and adding Anthony will turn the Thunder into a special team.

George is convinced that the Thunder now have enough talent to compete among the best, especially the Golden State Warriors, who have won two NBA titles in the last three seasons.

Acquiring Anthony was the second big offseason move by the Thunder, who acquired George by trading Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to the Indiana Pacers. The Anthony trade will also help convince George to stay with the Thunder and Westbrook to sign the five-year, $207-million supermax extension that the team placed on the table for weeks.

George, Westbrook convinced Anthony

George and Westbrook combined efforts in convincing Anthony, a 10-time All-Star, to waive his no-trade clause for the Thunder. Earlier, Anthony had the Houston Rockets as the only preferred trade destination. Initially, he also included the Cleveland Cavaliers but removed them after rumors of Kyrie Irving asking for a trade surfaced.

For weeks, the Rockets and the Knicks tried to work out a trade but failed to find common ground. The delay forced Anthony to submit two more teams to the Knicks -- the Thunder and the Cavaliers.

USA Today reported that Westbrook and George’s Team USA ties with Anthony helped them land the former Knicks superstar. Westbrook played alongside Anthony in the 2012 Olympics in London while George was his teammate during the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The Americans won basketball gold in both of these Olympics. According to George, when he played with Anthony in Rio, they both expressed interest in playing together in one NBA uniform. And when George saw that opportunity with the Thunder, he and Westbrook connected with Anthony to entice him to move to Oklahoma City.

George now has chance to play with superstars

In his first seven seasons in the NBA, George was open about his frustrations over the Pacers’ failure to surround him with star talent. Now, George has a chance to play with, not one but two legitimate superstars in Westbrook and Anthony. Westbrook recently came from a historic performance last season, where he won the MVP Award after averaging in triple-double in the regular season. Now that he will play alongside two superstars, George said the Thunder have a legitimate chance to win a championship.