Last year, Paul George notified the Pacers that he didn’t plan to re-sign with them in the summer of 2018. Fearing that he would leave Indiana with nothing in return, the Pacers traded him to Oklahoma City for a package including Victor Oladipo.
Potential suitors from around the league lined up for George’s services last summer. With just one year left on his contract, there was a risk that he was only a one season rental, but many teams didn’t seem to care.
The Thunder took a chance on George. The organization was still recovering from losing Kevin Durant, and George was thought of as a guy that could partly replace Durant’s role.