Even though Paul George is still under a contract, there has been a lot of talk that he could go somewhere else this summer. This is mostly because George is a great player who wants to win, yet the Indiana Pacers haven't been successful with him so far. Despite that, the 27-year old forward is committed to playing in Indiana until his contract expires.
Back in 2014, Paul George signed a 5-year deal with the Pacers. The contract is worth $91.5 million and the forward will be paid $19.5 million next season. After it, he will have a player option on the final year of his contract and it will be up to him to choose whether he wants to stay with the Pacers or not.
Considering he will be only 28 and one of the top players at his position, George could be one of the top free agents if he decides to opt out of his contract.
Paul George intends to play for the Pacers
"I am a Pacer. I am under contract and I intend to play," Paul George said for NBA.com. While it is clear that he intends to keep playing for the Pacers, it seems he's doing it only because he is under contract. It is very unlikely that he will stay in Indiana after next season as he'll be very valuable as a Free Agent.
If he decides to opt in and play for the Pacers for an extra year, he will be paid $20.7 million. However, he will be able to be paid much more money as a free agent, and he will also have a chance to get big money while also playing for a championship contender.
This would be a win-win situation for the superstar forward, and it is not very likely that the Pacers would be able to offer more to keep him.
George had the best season of his career in 2017 as he averaged 23.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He shot career-high 46.1 percent from the field and he appeared in 75 games.
Unfortunately, the Indiana Pacers were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs, but Paul George still put on a great show, averaged 28.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 7.3 assists in the series.
George's comments on trade rumors
Even before this summer, Paul George was included in numerous trade rumors, mostly at the trade deadline.
He doesn't pay much attention to the rumors, however, but he understands that they are part of the business. "They're all crazy. But all are to be expected. I've been dealing with this since last season, but I'm just living in the moment," George said.
This won't be the last time that his name will be thrown around in trade rumors as next summer will be especially intense for him. We will see if the superstar forward will remain a Pacer, or he will take his talents somewhere else in hopes of winning a championship.
