According to Tim Kawakami and Marcus Thompson of The Athletic, the Warriors may be trying to add Paul George to the superteam in the future. But don’t expect Paul George to actually become a Warrior.
The Golden State Warriors are already the greatest superteam in NBA history, but they might not be finished trying to add star talent to their roster.
On the podcast Posting Up with Tim Bontemps, Tim Kawakami revealed he and Marcus Thompson were speculating that the Warriors would try to acquire Paul George in the near future.
Marcus and I have teased this for more than a year. We think they’re going to go after Paul George, somehow. I think Joe Lacob is going to try to find a way to get Paul George. I don’t know how that would happen, but I didn’t know how it was going to happen when they were – three years ago, when they said they were go after Durant. Well, they didn’t say it. But they might have whispered it.
This rumor is odd, honestly. The Warriors had the chance to acquire Paul George only months ago: the Pacers offered George for Klay Thompson in June, before George was eventually traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors refused, as Thompson has been such a key player for them for so many years. In addition, Paul George has been insistent on his desire to opt out of his contract next summer to join the Los Angeles Lakers, no matter what team he ends the season with.
Funny enough, there are rumors that George is trying to persuade Klay Thompson and LeBron James to join him in coming years.
So it seems impossible that the Warriors will give up one of their big four stars (Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Draymond Green) for George. Dan Feldman explains the various methods the Warriors could use to add Paul George, but all of them require a gutting of the entire supporting cast and massive paycuts for both Durant and George. Since Durant already took a decent paycut for this season, and George is looking for a max contract, this is highly unlikely.
Also, Paul George might not want to stay on the Warriors. The Dubs are already stacked with talent, and George’s desire to go to the Lakers probably stems from the potential to grow his own superteam in one of the best markets in America. The Lakers will likely be able to sign two max-contract free agents next summer, so a new superteam in Los Angeles is not only possible, but in my opinion, likely.
Of course, the Warriors might put out a few feelers to George at the trade deadline or next offseason. But don’t expect much of it. After all, why fix something that’s not broken?