Paul George Rumors: Hawks Make an Offer to Pacers That's Difficult to Pass Up
It is looking more and more likely that Paul George will be out of Indiana next season, at least based on the latest National Basketball Association (NBA) trade rumors.
George has expressed interest in playing for his hometown, leading many to believe he could be donning the Los Angeles Lakers jersey soon.
However, the latest NBA trade rumors suggest that he is not getting into the purple and yellow uniform. Brian Windhorst of ESPN says that the Atlanta Hawks are interested and made a huge offer to have George on the team.
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"Several teams made trade offers for George in February, including the Atlanta Hawks, who offered four first-round picks in exchange for him," he wrote.
"George, who grew up as a Kobe Bryant fan in Southern California, has expressed an interest in playing for the Los Angeles Lakers in the past," Windhorst went on to say.
Lakers Nation says that this is the best offer there is for George yet and with no assurance that there will be a bigger one presented to them, the Pacers would not want to pass up an opportunity to get four first-round picks.
Of course, many teams are expected to go for George. The Lakers could simply offer up their no. 2 pick to sway the Pacers while the Boston Celtics, which have also shown interest in getting George, could trade their top draft pick to pull it off.
While it seems that George is all set up to leave Indiana, Pacers president Kevin Pritchard said that George has actually expressed interest in staying long-term although he emphasized he wants to be a contender.
"The Pacers could wait and see whether George makes the All-NBA team next season, because he'd then be eligible for the $200 million-plus deal while other teams could only guarantee about $130 million," Windhorst wrote.
