Though the sides have been linked for quite some time, it appears Paul George won’t be heading to the Boston Celtics after all.
In a stunner of a deal Friday night, the Indiana Pacers reportedly agreed to trade the star forward to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis.
The Pacers reportedly had fielded a number of offers for George, including one from the Boston Celtics. According to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, the C’s offered the Pacers three first-round draft picks — not including either Brooklyn Nets pick or the Los Angeles Lakers/Sacramento Kings pick — and two starting players, one of whom being Jae Crowder.
Although there’s a chance none of the three first-rounders the Celtics offered would be lottery selections, Boston’s package certainly is a whole lot better than what Indiana received from OKC. Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge reportedly wasn’t willing to give up a top pick, and that might have been a deal-breaker for the Pacers.
It’s believed around the NBA that a trade for George effectively would be a trade for a one-year rental player, as his contract expires at season’s end. With that in mind, the Celtics reportedly offered quite the package for a major risk.
Thumbnail photo via Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports Images
