Though the Indiana Pacers are situated in a position to make the postseason in the Eastern Conference barring a late season collapse, their 32-31 record is not what Pacers president Larry Bird or star forward Paul George had in mind. With the 2017 NBA trade deadline now in the rearview, the Pacers stayed put with their current roster, despite George reportedly looking for some additional help in order to turn Indiana into a contender. With his requests unfulfilled, rumors across the NBA emerged that Bird and the Pacers were shopping the two-way superstar with the Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks, and Los Angeles Lakers serving as possible destinations.
Bird recently opened up regarding these rumored discussions surrounding George, citing a phone call with his old friend and current Los Angeles Lakers president Magic Johnson. Following from Tania Ganguli of The LA Times:
The phone call lasted less than five minutes, consisted mostly of small talk and might have touched only briefly on the fate of Indiana star Paul George.
“I wasn’t motivated to move Paul George at the deadline,” Bird said. “I can’t remember if it was even brought up or not. I don’t think it was. It’s all fake news anyway. You know that. Somebody’s gonna start it and [it] just was a snowball effect. [The phone call] was not about Paul George.”
Though the addition of George would’ve taken plenty of playoff contenders over the top, based on the latest from Bird it’s clear he didn’t even entertain moving the Fresno State product. While there weren’t substantial discussions between Johnson and Bird regarding the availability of George, the 6’9″ forward does reportedly have interest in joining the Lakers once he hits free agency.
With the regular season dwindling down and the postseason looming, the Pacers should be focusing on the playoffs but also preparing themselves for an offseason where they try to surround the seemingly frustrated George with the requisite talent to build a contender.
