Would it not be conceivable that KP didn't want to trade George to a contender in the east, so he looked west, but spurned a better offer by the blazers because of sour grapes?
It's certainly conceivable--I said as much in an earlier post: it wouldn't shock me if Pritchard was petty. I'd just need to see what Portland actually offered. If their headliner was Crabbe or Turner, then I wouldn't consider it silly to have turned it down.
He could always live in Malibu in the off-season. I agree that he'd probably want to live there even during the season when not on the road, but if he and Westbrook click and the Thunder do something impressive like make it to the conference finals, I could imagine him deciding that's better than being first-round fodder in LA. I think the chances of that are very low, just not zero.
If he and Westbrook click, they'd still both go to LA. LOL. Edit: They could put a team together in LA that is just as good as the Plunder.
Could be totally wrong here, but he does not fear me like Carmelo did in his prime. Melo could attack the basket and there was nothing you could do but foul him. George as you mentioned is a very very good and I think he would have fit perfectly with the Blazers, but isn't he basically an excellent 3 and D guy? Nothing wrong with that because when he is on...... he is unstoppable. But when guys like Harden, or as you mentioned Westbrook, get the ball at the end of the game you have no clue if they are going to pull up for the 3, stop for the mid range. or attack the basket. My guess is with Paul George...he is shooting the 3. Again I think PG is an excellent player and he will be an excellent Robin to Westbrook, as long as his ego can handle it. But is he Batman?
Suppose RW doesn't extend this offseason. PG leaves. Cupboard is bare. RW leaves. Left with capspace and nothing else. Suppose RW extends. PG leaves. Team is much worse. Team has cap space. Only way they come out is if PG re-signs AND they play well.
The more I think about it, the more likely this seems. Both are LA guys. Both are free agents this summer. There's no reason to think that they wouldn't be willing to head to Cali together. Who'd have ever thought that the best outcome for the Lakers could possibly have been George being traded to the Thunder?
All this hometown talk with players is overstated. Rarely does it actually happen, and when it does it usually doesn't end positively. A lot of players say it's more of a distraction than anything. And with Westbrook, if he left for LA, it'd go against everything we've been led to believe about how he's built. Im not even a Westbrook fan but he's probably the realest player in the league. There's nothing phony about him, so if he made that move, I'd be shocked.
I hardly think this "destroys" them (your words). Too early to say that, by far. Talk about a knee-jerk reaction.
The Thunder only gave up an average SG and a really underwhelming PF prospect for a superstar... even if he leaves it doesn't need leave them missing that much..
Really interesting article by Zach Lowe about the George saga. http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/pag...ma-city-thunder-fallout-pacers-lakers-celtics
So if Westbrook and PG leave for LA are we talking Clippers? Maybe we root for Ball to have a promising rookie year so the Lakers are less likely to want Westbrook. (and RW is less likely to want to go to the Lakers) Unless you think he and Lonzo could co-exist in the backcourt...which I don't under the current rules. (Only one ball on the court at a time)
Ball is an unproven rookie. Sure he was the Number 2 pick, but so was Brandon Ingram and D'Angelo Russel. If the Lakers have a chance to land Westbrook and Paul George, they will either let Ball back up Westbrook for the remainder of his rookie contract or they will trade him as part of a package for the third piece of their Big 3. I don't give a shit what his dad says, Lonzo Ball ain't the kind of transcendent player you pass on TWO established superstars to accommodate. BNM
He is an unproven rookie now, but he won't be next summer. People in LA are very high on him now. We will see if they are right.
