It appears the Warriors were close to trading Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Before George declined his $48.7 million contract option with Los Angeles on Saturday — effectively eliminating any chance Golden State had of acquiring him — the Warriors reportedly thought they were close to landing the nine-time NBA star, according to The Athletic. Tim Kawakami reported in his latest columnciting sources.
“[George’s opt-out decision] This came after very serious negotiations between the Warriors, George and the Clippers leading up to the Saturday afternoon deadline for George’s contract decision and after the Warriors believed — multiple times — that they were close to signing the 34-year-old small forward, according to team sources, Kawakami wrote.
“The Warriors agreed to give George a maximum four-year extension upon his arrival. They believed they had proposed several different forms of trade that the Clippers could and would accept.”
Kawakami also reported that George had given “strong indications” that he wanted to join the Warriors, and that Golden State veterans Steph Curry and Draymond Green were “100 percent” on board with the move, but that financial concerns were “too heavy” for the Clippers.
According to Kawakami, the Warriors offered several trade packages they thought the Clippers would accept, including a combination of, but not limited to, Andrew Wiggins, Chris Paul, Jonathan Kuminga, or Moses Moody, and one future first-round pick.
Kawakami added that the Warriors likely would not have included both Wiggins and Kuminga together on any show.
George is now an unrestricted free agent and is scheduled to hold meetings with a handful of interested teams, including the Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, and Orlando Magic, in the coming days.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, they will no longer be in contention.
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