In the summer of 2017, the Indiana Pacers traded Paul George to the Thunder, and Kyrie Irving asked to be traded and left LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
However, in an alternate universe, George, LeBron and Irving were all teammates — and it almost happened in this universe, George said on his Podcast P with Paul George podcast (hat tip Yahoo Sports).
Paul George says he almost teamed up with LeBron in Cleveland
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) March 27, 2023
Toronto, Boston, and San Antonio were additional potential landing locations.
(Via @PodcastPShow ) pic.twitter.com/DvruAOKIYC
“I thought I was gonna go to Cleveland. Cleveland was close to getting me with’ Bron there...
“I’m chopping it up with’ Bron, like ‘Yo, how can we make this work?’ We’re trying to figure it out; he’s going back to [Cavs management], telling them how to get me. So I’m thinking like, ‘Oh, OK, we might make this happen. I might be with’ Bron over here in Cleveland.’...
“It fell through ‘cause Cleveland and Indiana are in the same division.”
George added that the Celtics, Spurs and Raptors were also in the mix for his services. He ended up going to Oklahoma City, and eventually on to the Los Angeles Clippers.
A couple of weeks after the George deal fell through, Irving was pushing his way out of Cleveland (and after that LeBron was destined to move on eventually). If the Cavaliers had gotten George would Irving have wanted to stay? Good luck predicting what Irving was thinking or might have done, but if he felt he wasn’t getting enough sunshine in the shadow of LeBron, adding George to the roster would not help that issue.
George and LeBron’s teams square off in a huge matchup with playoff implications this Wednesday. Unfortunately, George will watch this one in street clothes due to a sprained knee.
