Report: Pacers, Cavaliers have discussed Paul George deal

The Cleveland Cavaliers may be looking to reload the deck after this season’s Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Their target? Indiana Pacers forward Paul George.

As Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting, the Pacers are beginning to reach out to possible trade partners for a one-year “rental” of the All-Star forward. Those talks reportedly have included the defending Eastern Conference Champion Cleveland Cavaliers.

The news comes just hours after Woj broke the story George plans to leave the Pacers at the end of his current contract, with his preferred destination being his home-state Los Angeles Lakers.

According to Wojnarowski, George’s agent Aaron Mintz told newly appointed Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard that he planned to leave the franchise.

Pritchard reportedly has begun the process of reaching out to teams that may be interested in George’s services for the 2017-18 NBA season. The Lakers, reportedly, have not been contacted regarding a possible trade.

With George’s preferred landing spot not in consideration, yet, the door has been opened to LeBron James and the Cavaliers. The Cavs are coming off of a 4-1 NBA Finals defeat at the hands of the Golden State Warriors. That matchup solidified the notion that the Cavaliers are not ready to compete with the Warriors in their current iteration.

If Cleveland can add PG13 without giving up part of their big 3 — which seems unlikely, but who knows — the Cavaliers might be within striking distance of the defending champs.

George is a versatile scorer who can create his own shot and is one of the best two-way players in the league — the type of player that Cleveland definitely could’ve used to battle the offensive and defensive juggernaut from the Bay Area.

Although acquiring George is a no-brainer for any team looking to contend, there is a lot to fear with bringing on a player who has so adamantly voiced his desire to play for the Lakers.

George was born in Palmdale, California and played college ball at Fresno State, so the California ties run deep.

But if anything can sell George on that Ohio life, an almost-guaranteed trip to the Finals for the foreseeable future might be it. If it doesn’t work out, he can still return home next summer without the Lakers having to sell any important pieces to bring him west.

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LeBron will likely do everything in his power to make sure Paul George is in it for the long haul.