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Indiana Pacers

Insider: Trade involving Paul George before Thursday’s draft no longer imminent

Nate Taylor
IndyStar
Pacers and Paul George await news on whether he'll earn All-NBA honors.

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana Pacers’ trade involving Paul George being completed before Thursday’s NBA draft doesn’t appear imminent. The Pacers, according to multiple league sources, are considering several trade offers for George, but the team doesn’t feel pressure to get a deal done by Thursday.

New team president Kevin Pritchard has engaged in trade talks with teams such as the Houston Rockets, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Lakers. The Washington Wizards and the Los Angeles Clippers have also been interested in acquiring George, according to several media reports.

Those teams' offers, however, have not intrigued the Pacers enough to complete a trade.

George, who has one year left on his contract, informed Pritchard on Saturday through his agent that he intends to leave the Pacers as a free agent after next season. George, after developing into one the league’s best players during his seven seasons in Indiana, wanted to give Pritchard and the Pacers the opportunity to plan their future accordingly. George intends to join the Lakers, his hometown team, when he becomes a free agent.

The Pacers, according to sources, are optimistic that other teams' offers for George will become more enticing Thursday afternoon before the draft that night. Pritchard wants to receive the most compensation possible in exchange for George, but the All-Star’s value throughout the league, especially with his known desire to join the Lakers, is limited since he’s likely to only spend one season with his new team. 

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Those factors, according to a source, could lead the Pacers into taking offers throughout the summer, and potentially into training camp, to complete a deal. If a trade is agreed upon, George plans to play out his contract and become a free agent next summer.

One source said George’s trade value would continue to drop if a deal is not in place after the draft. Such a situation would potentially put the Pacers in one of the most tenuous positions in the league entering next season.

On Tuesday, the Lakers completed a trade with the Brooklyn Nets that allows them to have enough cap to acquire George as a free agent next summer. The Lakers, who possess the 28th pick in the draft, sent center Timofey Mozgov and guard D'Angelo Russell to the Nets for center Brook Lopez and the 27th pick. 

The Lakers then, according to ESPN.com, offered the Pacers a trade package Tuesday afternoon of the 27th pick, the 28th pick and a young player on their roster, either forward Julius Randle or guard Jordan Clarkson. The Pacers, according to a source, would need the Lakers’ offer to significantly improve to complete a deal that would send George to Los Angeles for next season.

Last season, the Sacramento Kings traded All-Star center Demarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans during the All-Star break in exchange for rookie Buddy Hield, Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway and a future first- and second-round picks. Sacramento, for many analysts, didn’t receive full value for Cousins in part because he had only one full season remaining on his contract.

George, according to a source, knew it wouldn’t be easy to be upfront about his plans with Pritchard — especially after Pritchard told him the Pacers’ plan this offseason was to build a roster for next season around him to compete in the Eastern Conference with the intentions of convincing him to re-sign.

One reason George made the decision Saturday to inform Pritchard of his intentions was that he wasn’t comfortable putting the Pacers in a similar situation that the Oklahoma City Thunder went through two seasons ago. 

The Thunder, a similar small market team, chose to have Kevin Durant play out the final year of his contract for the 2015-16 season. Durant then signed with the Golden State Warriors in free agency and the Thunder received nothing in return. With Durant, Oklahoma City took Golden State to a seven-game series in the Western Conference finals. Without Durant last season, the Thunder slipped from 55 to 47 wins and fell in five games in the first round of the playoffs to the Rockets. Durant helped lead the Warriors to the NBA championship earlier this month. 

George respects Pritchard, former team president Larry Bird and coach Nate McMillan. He also values the strong relationships he has forged with several people on the team and in the franchise’s front office. 

If no trade is made this summer, George, according to a source, would still be comfortable playing out the final year of his contract next season for the Pacers. 

Call IndyStar reporter Nate Taylor at (317) 444-6484. Follow him on Twitter: @ByNateTaylor.

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