Indiana Pacers: The Pros And Cons Of Trading Paul George This Summer
The Verdict
Paul George is the face of the franchise, and he even said in that interview with ESPN that he wants to be the one to bring Indiana its first NBA championship. The Pacers can offer PG-13 a whopping $219 million contract extension this summer (and even more if he makes an All-NBA team), which is a hell of an offer to turn down just to test free agency in 2018.
But George is clearly grown disenfranchised with the direction the team is going in. He told reporters in December that the season hadn’t been fun, and after hearing his name pop up in trade rumors at the deadline, he expressed his displeasure with not being “in the loop.”
All this came before his incendiary comments about the lack of fight in the locker room after a one-point loss to the Timberwolves:
Paul George: “There’s no urgency, no sense of urgency, no winning pride. This locker room is just not pissed off enough.”
— Nate Taylor (@ByNateTaylor) March 29, 2017
The Pacers may have made the right decision at the trade deadline to hang onto their franchise superstar, but if — and when — this season concludes with a first round playoff exit, frustrations will continue to mount for both player and management alike.
Those Lakers rumors aren’t going anywhere, and unless Bird has an ironclad plan ready to roll out in July that completely retools the roster into a championship-caliber team, Indiana has to at least pick up the phone as draft day approaches.
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The clock is ticking on Paul George’s time with the franchise and as much as it stings, it might be time for the Indiana Pacers to think about beating the Bulls to the punch via a certain star small forward trade with Boston.