Lakers Rumors: Early Playoff Exit For OKC Could Bring Paul George To Los Angeles, ‘Sporting News’ Reports
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George is considered as one of the top free agent targets this coming offseason, alongside LeBron James, DeMarcus Cousins, Chris Paul, and Kevin Durant. With Paul and Durant seemingly ready to stick with their respective teams and Cousins out with a career-altering injury, George and James are expected to become the most sought-after names this summer.
There are plenty of rumors suggesting where George might end up playing next season, but three teams have been linked to him so far: the Thunder, the Philadelphia 76ers, and his hometown club, the Los Angeles Lakers.
Metro USA’s Matt Burke said that the Lakers “have been the longtime favorites to land George” ever since the five-time NBA All-Star disclosed that he wants to play for the Lakers in the future.
In a report by Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo! Sports last year, George admitted that he intends to leave the Indiana Pacers and join the Lakers in the 2018 free agency period. However, Indiana made the first move by trading him to Oklahoma City last summer, which may have changed George’s plans.
During All-Star weekend held last month in Los Angeles, George was showered with praises by Lakers fans saying that they “want” him to join the franchise this summer. The media asked him lots of questions regarding the possibility of signing with the Lakers, but George evidently did not want to divulge anything at this point of the season.
“I know what feels best. But it’s a long way until the end of the season,” George said in one of the interviews.
George has been emitting mixed signals about his free agency status, as he has also been praising teammate Russell Westbrook in other interviews, saying that the reigning league MVP is one of the reasons why he would want to stick around in Oklahoma City for the long term.
Sporting News reported that an “early playoff exit” by the Thunder could spell the difference between George staying in Oklahoma City and him leaving to go home in Los Angeles.
The report noted that a “deep playoff run could be enough to convince George to re-sign in Oklahoma City” as he might “see the pair of Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony along with emerging center Steven Adams as his best chance to win a championship.”
The Thunder are seventh in the West right now and only one-and-a-half games ahead of the 8th and final playoff spot, which means anything can still happen from this point forward.
