Paul George rumors: Pacers looking to move quickly on deal
With reports of Paul George looking to take his talents elsewhere, the Indiana Pacers are looking to make a deal quickly for George.
The Indiana Pacers woke up on Sunday to news that Paul George intends to leave in 2018 via free agency, with Los Angeles Lakers being the preferred destination. That’s not what they wanted to hear, as it completely ruined any leverage that they had salvaged at the end of the season.
Although George said he intended to play for the Los Angeles Lakers, it made more sense for the Cleveland Cavaliers to now take a one-year rental on the Pacers’ star. The Cavs might actually have enough leverage on the Pacers to steal George.
Right after reports came out that George would leave Indiana, Kevin Pritchard and the Pacers made it known that they wanted to trade Paul George. In the report, it was also noted that Indiana was reaching out to teams, who were looking for a one-year rental. One of the teams on that list was the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Now, ESPN’s Zach Lowe is reporting that the Pacers are looking to move quickly in a trade for Paul George.
Sense from teams talking to IND is that Pacers intend to move fast on a PG deal.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) June 19, 2017
With the NBA Draft coming up on Thursday, June 22, the Pacers might be looking to deal ahead of that deadline. Indiana was looking to keep PG13 this year and convince him to stay for the future. If George was to make the All-NBA team this offseason, the Pacers could offer a contract that no other team could match.
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Looks like Indiana will trade its homegrown star soon, but where will he land next? Cleveland to join forces with LeBron and Kyrie? Los Angeles for the Hollywood glamour and home? Looks like we’ll find out sooner than originally anticipated. Stay tuned for more PG13 trade rumors, it’s only heating up right now.