Lakers rumors: Why the Lakers are the most intriguing for Paul George
By Jason Reed
3. Schematically, the Lakers may be the best fit for George
Despite having the talent to compete with the best teams in the league, the Oklahoma City Thunder floundered were handled by the Utah Jazz in six games. OKC had the reigning MVP in Russell Westbrook alongside a new big three in George and Carmelo Anthony.
Steven Adams was the rim-protecting big man and Andre Roberson was the key defender. On paper, the Thunder had everything they needed to be one of the most successful teams in the NBA.
And none of that worked out. Sure, Roberson did get hurt down the stretch and his defense was greatly missed. Plus, Carmelo is not really the same Carmelo as a few years ago and is undergoing the same transition as Dwyane Wade; he may not be starting caliber anymore.
However, the most disappointing thing about the Thunder is that Westbrook and George could not carry the team to a deep postseason run. Westbrook did his typical stat-stuffing antics, taking some bad shots in the process while George actually looked timid out on the court.
It just did not work. Fortunately, the Lakers could work for George.
He does not have to deal with the ball vacuum headache that came with Westbrook. Lonzo Ball is a distributing guard after all and will progress into a double-digit assist per game guy. Ball also would form one half of the best defensive backcourt in basketball with George.
The team also has a second option scorer that will take pressure off of George. Brandon Ingram looks ready to score 20 points per game and will help George. Julius Randle could also flirt with 20, also giving George the much-needed tenacious guy down low.
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And the Lakers have great depth in Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart, who can both score off of the bench with Hart giving LA good defense. Los Angeles has all the pieces, all the team needs is to plug a true scorer into the shooting guard position. Enter Paul George.