With Paul George set to hit the market next summer, the Pacers may be forced to trade him, rather than risk losing the All-Star for nothing. With the Draft Lottery finished and the order set, here are five lottery teams that should be calling the Pacers.
Indiana Pacers’ forward Paul George has been the face of the franchise since the departure of Danny Granger. But Indiana can’t seem to get past LeBron’s teams in the playoffs and it looks like they might have maxed out their potential.
Ex-Team President Larry Bird tried to give Paul George a veteran roster to compete with by adding Jeff Teague and Al Jefferson, but those moves didn’t seem to work in the postseason. George has continually voiced his displeasure with the direction of the team and it started to become more obvious down the stretch of the season.
After every game in the first round, George called out a different teammate for their performance (or, lack thereof) and seemed to distance himself from the others in his locker room. President Larry Bird, who many thought George had a good relationship with, stepped down from his role, making the decision to try and leave Indiana a little bit easier.
Small-market teams like Indiana should always try and re-sign their star draft picks, because they likely won’t be able to land big-time free agents. Now that it seems like the Pacers’ superstar might not want to stay in Indy long-term, they have to consider trading him to make sure they get something in return. The Pacers don’t want to be like Oklahoma City, who got caught with their pants down when Kevin Durant bolted out of town for nothing in return.
With the NBA Draft Lottery setting the draft order last night, here are five lottery teams that should call and inquire about trading for Paul George.
5. Dallas Mavericks
Yes, the Mavericks just signed Harrison Barnes to a max-salary contract this past offseason, but when you have the chance to add one of the best two-way players in the game, you can’t pass up that opportunity.
Dallas is stuck between a rock and a hard place. In the NBA, you either have to be elite with landing top free agents to keep building your team, or tank like the Philadelphia 76ers and consistently get top-five picks until you find a superstar. The Mavericks are in neither situation and as a result, they’ll always be straddling around .500.
They’ll never be bad enough where they can land a top-three pick in the NBA Draft, but they’re likely not to attract the premier free agents either. Over the last few offseasons, they’ve added B-list guys like Wesley Matthews, Chandler Parsons or Harrison Barnes.
This may be the Mavericks best chance to try and land a superstar to turn their franchise around. Some might say that Paul George is coming to Indiana-west, but the Mavericks have a better organizational structure and can definitely add better pieces around the superstar. Dallas has the No. 9 pick in the draft.
They have young center Nerlens Noel who can protect the rim and hopefully develop into a star in the NBA. They had breakout point guard, Yogi Ferrell, and obviously have Barnes and Matthews. Dallas isn’t afraid to spend the money to bring talent and they should definitely give Indiana a call about Paul George.
4. New York Knicks
This is all contigent on the Knicks shipping Carmelo Anthony out of town this year. Although Anthony’s been more of a team player this year, even with the Phil Jackson drama, he still doesn’t fit the system and is on the back end of his career.
The Knicks stink right now, but have one valuable asset in Kristaps Porzingis. But with just him, New York might not be going anywhere. He doesn’t really fit in with Carmelo, as they play more of the “my turn, your turn” game, rather than as a team.
Imagine if the Knicks moved Anthony for some draft picks and were able to go ahead and trade for Paul George. They would immediately have two stars in their prime to make a run for the playoffs next year. George is a better two-way player than Carmelo and his age matches up better with Porzingis. The Knicks currently have the No. 8 pick to offer Indiana, along with other assorted pieces.
New York doesn’t have many pieces around those two guys, but with the amount of salary cap space they could potentially have this summer, they can lure free agents. With young, budding stars and the flash of New York, Phil Jackson should be able to re-shape this roster quickly around them.
George gets to leave Indiana and head for the big lights of Madison Square Garden and the Knicks could start a new era of basketball post-Carmelo. It’s a call that Phil Jackson has to make to the Pacers.
3. Miami Heat
Once home to Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, South Beach invites any superstar and makes them feel at home. Pat Riley is salivating at the thought of possibly adding Paul George via trade. The Miami Heat lost Wade, LeBron and Chris Bosh in a span of a few years and almost made the playoffs this past season on the backs of Dion Waiters and Goran Dragic.
Riley is one of those executives in the league that you have to bet on succeeding, no matter the circumstances. The front office and ownership in Miami isn’t afraid to take risks and splash in free agency, which is one of the reasons they were able to be competing for championships a few seasons ago.
Miami will have budding stars in Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside. If Dion Waiters can play the way he did in the second half of the season before his injury, they could have some real depth. They also have some younger players that stepped up for them, like Justise Winslow. Coach Erik Spoelstra should be in the running for Coach of the Year, even though he probably won’t win it. Miami has the No. 14 pick and would probably need to send Winslow or at least one of their other young guards to make this work.
Adding Paul George to the mix would instantly supplant Miami as one of the top-five seeds in the Eastern Conference next season. George is young and fills a need at small forward for the Heat. Pat Riley isn’t afraid to make the franchise-altering decision and purely thinks business. It’s a deal that the Heat would do in a heartbeat for their lottery pick.
2. Boston Celtics
What a week for Danny Ainge. His team just won a Game 7 at home to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals and landed the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft this next month. If that doesn’t shout Executive of the Year, I don’t know what does.
Boston is littered with young talent up and down the roster. They have budding superstar, Isaiah Thomas, who’s playing like an MVP. The Celtics also have supplementary pieces, such as Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown. They went out and signed big man Al Horford last summer, to line up with Kelly Olynyk.
Yet, they’re still likely going to lose in the Eastern Conference Finals against LeBron James and the Cavaliers. They don’t have enough horses to run with the Cavaliers in a seven-game series. That’s why Danny Ainge should pick up his phone and call the Pacers for Paul George.
Boston is missing one big superstar that could really threaten Cleveland. They were debating if they should trade for George or Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline, but decided not to make a hasty decision.
If the Eastern Conference Finals ends up the way we all think, which is with the Cavaliers advancing to the Finals, then Boston should really consider this trade. Their franchise is set up to compete now and by adding George, you can set up yourself up now and for the future. It might be more risky to believe in a draft pick, rather than giving it up for the sure thing in Paul George.
1. Los Angeles Lakers
“I’m coming home, tell the world I’m coming home.”
Paul George hasn’t been secretive about his love for Los Angeles. He’s a native of the Southern California area and played college basketball at Fresno State.
George idolizes Kobe Bryant and even used to wear No. 24 in honor of Bryant. He announced on the Jimmy Kimmel Live show that he’s going to be working out with the Lakers’ superstar and picking his brain on basketball matters.
Ever since Magic Johnson has taken over the Lakers, it seems like they’re about to turn it around soon. They have young prospects with star potential in Brandon Ingram and D’Angelo Russell. Julius Randle is a solid role player in this league and would look great alongside Paul George. Jordan Clarkson is another guy that the Lakers can lean on in the future as well. Some of that core would need to go to Indiana, along with the No. 2 pick, but they’d still have plenty left to compete with.
Los Angeles was terrible this past season, but with Johnson and Rob Pelinka at the helm, they have a chance to turn around this team quickly. The lure of Los Angeles and the mystique of the Lakers’ organization always has a chance to add quality free agents.
They’ll have a lot of cap space this summer and a vacant spot at small forward next to Ingram. The first call that Johnson should make is to the Indiana Pacers about adding Paul George, even if it means giving up the No. 2 pick and a shot at Lonzo Ball. The UCLA star, Ball, has a chance to be great in the NBA, but George is a superstar already and is willing to come to LA and take on the challenge of turning around of this team.
Next: 5 teams who should trade for D’Angelo Russell
Paul George has seemed frustrated with the Pacers and it would be crazy if they didn’t ponder moving him for assets in return. These five lottery teams should definitely make the call for George, even if it means they have to give up a chance for a top draft pick.