Paul George (Photo : Twitter)
The NBA trade rumors are heating up and some the LA Lakers are perceived to be one of the most active teams of the summer.
With Kobe Bryant retired, the Tinseltown team is ready to welcome a new start. It will not be an easy position considering the team's record the last three seasons, but it is still the Lakers with all the glamor and prestige of the franchise.
Will that star be Paul George of the Indiana Pacers? George is an LA native and he has been on the Lakers wish list for the longest time. According to a tweet from storied sportswriter Bill Simmons, the Lakers are ready to make their move to make the PG13 pipe dream a reality.
Also hearing that the Lakers want to make a BIG run at Paul George with their top-3 pick plus other stuff. (Not that they'd get him...)
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) May 4, 2016
Simmons, a well-known Boston Celtics die-hard, downplays the probability that the Lakers could actually get George but he also tweets that Larry Bird is just like his former teammate Danny Ainge in the sense that they are ready to trade anyone if there's a ridiculous offer.
The recent rumors from Lakers Nation that the team is ready to trade their young assets in order to "fill some holes" in the roster could support this claim by Simmons. The reason is that the Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and even part owner Jim Buss are tied down by their vow to make the Lakers competitive again. They only have two seasons on that leash.
Kupchak expressed his impatience with a seemingly exaggerated comment that it could take "ten or fifteen years" to rebuild through the draft. The OKC Thunder did not take that long after drafting Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden in three consecutive years. Still, if this statement represents the mindset of the front office that will make the decisions this summer, it does look like the young core will be gone.
The possible trade package will include the Lakers draft pick but it's imperative that they keep it in the top three-possibly just the top two for the Pacers to be interested. A tall point guard in D'Angelo Russell is also a plus as George Hill is more of a shooting guard trapped in a point guard's body. A pressing need for the Pacers is to add a solid frontcourt player and they might ask for Julius Randle.
Is that(Randle, Russell, top 3 draft pick) too much for Paul George? If they have a chance to land a superstar, they should not think twice. Getting PG13 would instantly make them an interesting destination for free agents. Kevin Durant has a lot of respect for George and he is a superstar comparable to Westbrook of the OKC Thunder. George would definitely attract other free agents to the Lakers in a way no coach can.
