Paul George revealed that he wanted to be signed by the Lakers after the Pacers

Paul George could play in Los Angeles after all, but he had the purple and gold as his No. 1 choice of team to be signed with after requesting a trade from the Indiana Pacers.

George didn’t get dealt to the Lakers; instead, he was sent to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Still, he wanted a chance to suit up in the Lakers jersey.

“We were trying to protect going somewhere that I really didn’t want to go,” George said of his trade request from the Pacers. “Obviously, I wanted to come back home. Lakers was – you know – first – my idol went there.”

George later said he is “with the right team,” talking about his current squad, the Clippers.

What the Lakers got instead of Paul George

For Lakers fans, it’s tough to know that George wanted to play for the franchise, but the consolation prize wasn’t so bad. The Lakers ended up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and they went on to win the NBA Finals in the 2019-20 season.