The Golden State Warriors will not rest on their laurels and plan to make their squad more formidable by eyeing Paul George when he becomes a free agent in 2018. George will play with the Oklahoma City Thunder this season but he is expected to become a free agent in 2018 and multiple teams are expected to line up for his services, including the Los Angeles Lakers. It was reported that George said he wanted to join the Lakers when his contract option arrives.
Tim Kawakami of The Athletic said the Warriors will try to make a run at George next summer.
In an interview on Tim Bontemps’ podcast, Kawakami said Warriors owner Joe Lacob “is going to try and find a way” to get George. The plan to pursue George might complicate matters for the Warriors, who cannot sign him to a maximum contract but rather would have to entice him to join a championship-caliber squad where he has the biggest chance of winning his first NBA ring. Kevin Durant bolted the Thunder and signed with the Warriors last season but his gamble paid off after winning his first NBA title.
Warriors have no salary cap room for George
As of now, the Warriors have maxed out their salary cap after signing Stephen Curry to a maximum contract worth $201 million, Durant to a two-year, $53 million deal and Andre Iguodala to a three-year, $48 million contract.
Klay Thompson and Draymond Green have two and three years remaining on their respective deals. In case George doesn’t want to take a pay cut, then the Warriors will have to part ways with Thompson or Iguodala via a sign-and-trade deal. Durant earlier agreed to a $9 million pay cut to help the Warriors keep other key players, like Iguodala and Shaun Livingston.
George almost joined Warriors via trade
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, George was almost traded by the Indiana Pacers to the Warriors for Klay Thompson. The Pacers offered George for Thompson but the Warriors turned it down. In a recent interview, George said a trade to the Warriors could have given him a chance to compete for a championship.
The Cleveland Cavaliers also had a chance to get George but the Pacers pulled out at the last minute. The Pacers then opted to trade him to the Thunder for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. George, who averaged a career-high 23.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 75 games with the Pacers last season, said he is excited to play alongside a tremendous player like Russell Westbrook.
