Are the Indiana Pacers ready to deal away star forward Paul George? The Pacers superstar has been more than vocal in the last few months about wanting to be traded away, and recently mentioned to various outlets that he is most interested in heading to Los Angeles to play for the Lakers. While no deal has been struck, George recently informed the Pacers franchise in no uncertain terms he plans to leave the team as an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2018 -- that is if he isn't traded away before then.
If all of these Paul George rumors about wanting to leave the Pacers are true, the Indiana front office has to be looking to deal him away ASAP.
After all, keeping a player who doesn’t want to be on your team and is not bashful on letting the world know about it can lead to a lot of problems down the road, especially in the locker room.
Paul George to Cleveland a real possibility?
Could the Pacers be willing to trade George to a divisional rival? ESPN’s Dave McMenamin indicates that the Pacers have wasted no time in trying to shop George after his most recent comments. Sources report that Indiana began shopping George's services this weekend to a few teams, including the defending Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers.The 27-year-old George who averaged 23.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals for Indiana this season could be exactly what the Cavaliers need to help them push to another NBA title next season.
Story updated with Pacers beginning trade talks for 'rentals' on Paul George, including contact with .... Cleveland. https://t.co/Ct6819EtyG
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 18, 2017
If Cleveland, what is the asking price?
The George rumors of possibly joining LeBron James and the Cavaliers have many NBA fans in Cleveland intrigued, but to get an all-star like George, what would the Cavs have to give in return?
Everyone knows LeBron James is untouchable, but what about Kevin Love or Kyrie Irving? They are as close as there is to an “untouchable” right outside of James, or at least they should be.
“To part with either the 25-year-old Irving or the 28-year-old Love, both coming off All-Star seasons and on relatively economical long-term deals, without any verbal commitment from George that he planned to stay in Cleveland beyond 2018 would be hard to agree to," one source familiar with the Cavs' thinking told ESPN.
While the Cavaliers are reportedly willing to enter into trade talks with the Indiana Pacers for George, they have no assurances that he will commit to a long-term deal in Cleveland. So would he be a one year rental for the upcoming season? A source told ESPN that Cleveland is confident its championship culture and overall atmosphere could help sway George to want to stay after playing out the 2017-18 season in the final year of his deal.
If Cleveland does land George, and they keep the Love, Irving, James core together in doing so, the Cavaliers are going to be the beast of the east once again.
