According to Thunder beat writer Royce Young, the chances of seeing Paul George in an Oklahoma City Thunder uniform next season are "not great".
George wants out of Oklahoma?
When asked on The Jump about Paul George's chances of remaining with the Thunder, Young had this to say: "Not great. I don't think that they're great. Everyone is well-aware that he wants to come to Los Angeles. He’s got eyes on the Lakers."
George is in a difficult spot in Oklahoma. While he has moved to a better team that has current MVP Russell Westbrook, it does not look like the team can go far next season.
The supporting cast leaves a lot to be desired as well. Players like Doug McDermott, Patrick Patterson, Jerami Grant, and Andre Roberson will not help them compete for an NBA title next season
In addition, Westbrook has not signed his extension and could leave in free agency next summer. And if he does stay, playing with Westbrook might not be the easiest thing in the world; just ask Kevin Durant. After sharing the floor with him for an entire season, George might come to the conclusion that he does not want to play with Westbrook anymore.
George and Westbrook are both ball-dominant stars that need the spotlight. George will surely not enjoy standing in the corner, watching Westbrook fill up the stat sheet.
Oklahoma City is also not the big market George wishes to be in. George wants to boost his brand, and there is no better place to do so than in Los Angeles while wearing the Lakers jersey.
Lakers awaiting George?
It has been recurrently said throughout this off-season that George is wanting to play for the Los Angeles Lakers next year.
It remains to be seen how much of this talk is real. What is certain, and has been said by George himself last month in an interview with Sports Illustrated, is that he has a dream of playing for his home team. the Lakers, and that he idolized Kobe Bryant.
The Lakers are on the right track and ready for success again. George may be sensing that next summer will be the right time to join the Lakers.
The Lakers have assembled an exciting young group of players who are only going to get better.
Leading this pack is one Lonzo Ball, who will have one year of NBA basketball under his belt. And Ball is a selfless player that players like George will look forward to sharing the floor with. In addition, the Lakers could convince George by acquiring another max player. They will have the cap room to do so. The odds are on the Lakers' favor to get Paul George next summer.
