Though Paul George remains with the Indiana Pacers following the NBA’s trade deadline, the Denver Nuggets did their darnedest to make him one of their own.
Per ESPN.com’s Marc Stein and Chris Haynes:
Denver today made a "monster" offer to Indiana for Paul George, league sources tell @ChrisBHaynes and me, but the talks gained no traction.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 23, 2017
Sources tell @ChrisBHaynes and me that it's been conveyed to Denver that Paul George would be highly unlikely to commit there long term.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 23, 2017
It’s unclear what the Nuggets were offering, but according to ESPN.com’s Zach Lowe, they were reluctant to include Jamal Murray in their package. Not that it mattered. George didn’t want to re-sign in Denver as a free agent in 2018—or ink an extension before then; he must really want to stay in Indiana.
Or, per USA Today‘s Sam Amick, maybe not:
I repeat: Paul George – barring a title chance in Indy – is hell-bent on heading for Laker Land. This message has been sent throughout NBA.
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) February 23, 2017
Oh, so, George is worried about getting past the San Antonio Spurs and Golden State Warriors, which is why he doesn’t want to join the Nuggets. Naturally, the Los Angeles Lakers, who have done nothing whatsoever to make us doubt their mettle, will be ready to compete with the NBA’s elite by 2018-19.
C’mon, now.
Regardless of how flawed George’s thinking is, this makes things interesting leading into the summer—particularly after the Pacers failed to upgrade their own roster at the deadline. His future in Indiana is officially up in the air.
