Several years ago, Paul George wanted a rebuilding Indiana Pacers team to trade him, and he reportedly wanted them to send him to the Los Angeles Lakers.
George is originally from Palmdale, California, which is on the northern outskirts of the greater Los Angeles area, so going back to his native metropolitan area made sense.
Instead, he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and in 2018, when he had the chance to join the Lakers as a free agent along with LeBron James, he decided to re-up with the Thunder.
Of course, George abruptly did an about-face one year later and asked them to trade him to the Los Angeles Clippers so he could team with Kawhi Leonard.
The All-Star forward may have thrown some shade at the Lakers when he said that winning an NBA championship with the Clippers would be much more significant than doing so with the Purple and Gold (h/t Lakers Daily).
“A championship with the Clippers 100% will outweigh a championship being with the Lakers,”
– Paul George
(Via @jbienkahn ) pic.twitter.com/fhwFeFDmcL
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) February 15, 2023
In three prior seasons with George and Leonard, the Clippers have been considered arguably the league’s best and most talented team when healthy, but they have zero NBA Finals appearances to show for it.
So far this season, they are 32-28 and in fifth place in the Western Conference. As the season wears on, it’s looking less and less likely the Clippers will win the world title that has always eluded them this season.
