IN lost the opportunity to sign George to a Designated Player Veteran Exception when he missed the All-Star Game this year, but reading the situation at this point it's hard to tell if that would have been a huge swing for the Pacers as they tried to keep their star.
The Vertical reported that IN star forward Paul George informed the Pacers through his agent, Aaron Mintz, that he plans to opt out of his contract following the 2017-18.
The Lakers can sign George to a four-year max deal worth $130 million, which they plan to offer him.
George failed to make the All-NBA Team last month, causing him to lose out on a huge extension from the Pacers that would have given him extra incentive to stay with Indiana.
There now appears to be some kind of expectation that the Pacers and Lakers could initiate a trade for George, so IN doesn't lose him completely as an asset. He averaged 14.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 7.4 assists a game as a freshman last season. IN would probably want draft picks, but the Cavs don't have many left to trade. IN is handcuffed now in trying to get any value for George.
George wants to come home.
Still, even with all those rumors out there, it may take some time before a George trade materializes, if it ever does. For every team except for the Lakers, acquiring George comes with the expectation that he could just be a "one-year rental".
German lobby calls for fast Brexit deal on trade
He said: "It's at testing times like these that we are reminded of the values and resolve we share with our closest allies in Europe".
The star swingman is supposedly drawing interest from different teams, making it seem as though a deal will be made as soon as possible.
Los Angeles has no need to trade for George when they know what his plans are.
"Again, what I've always been preaching, more so than you see now, is having guys I can win with", George said. They would have to fill out the roster with players on minimum contracts or trade one (or two) of their young talents for multiple players in return, but Los Angeles would get the star forward it needs to help bring the Lakers back to showtime prominence. A report by Ben Golliver of Sports Illustrated discussed this matter.
"That was something that I didn't recognize", Lakers President and co-owner Jeanie Buss said.
Look, George has every right to call the shots on his career, and it is better that he had his agent talk to the Pacers rather than keep them completely in the dark.
There are a couple of options that the Lakers could implement in pursuing George.
Despite George's success the Pacers did not have a substantially successful season. It's a fact that could depress the trade market for him, to the Lakers' advantage. Because of this, a member of the Big Three is likely to leave if they aim to accomplish a blockbuster move that will drastically make them better.
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