There are brighter days coming for Philadelphia 76ers, that’s for sure. Besides having two of the NBA’s most talented young players, Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, 76ers also have enough cap space to sign one max-contract player. While they have reserved that spot for LeBron James, whom they plan on pursuing this summer, they are also looking to other free agents. Reportedly, one of them is Oklahoma City Thunder’s All-Star Paul George.
George informed the OKC that he will decline his player option for 2018-19, and become an unrestricted free agent. According to ESPN, Philadelphia 76ers are ready to make their pitch to the 28-year-old in case they miss out on James.
Basketball-wise, Paul George to 76ers would make sense. He wouldn’t need the ball in his hand, giving Simmons room to operate, and would probably be the team’s first scoring option. Also, 76ers are a great defensive team and George would only make them better.
Still, the problem for Philadelphia will be the fact that Paul George is a highly sought-after player this summer. Besides Thunder, who are determined to keep him in Oklahoma, it looks like Houston Rockets are also trying to figure a way to pair him with newly crowned MVP James Harden and Chris Paul. There is also George’s publicly stated wish that he wants to play in his hometown for Los Angeles Lakers.
In the past season, Paul George averaged 21.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.0 steals per game.
