Now that Paul George isn’t playing like the partner Kawhi Leonard expected him to be last summer, people are remembering the other options that Leonard had before he reached out to George and recruited him to the Los Angeles Clippers. Recently, we talked about his attempts to bring both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant to Los Angeles before the duo decided to sign with the Brooklyn Nets.
Another option Leonard had was Jimmy Butler, who left the Philadelphia 76ers for the Miami Heat via sign-and-trade and now is leading his very talented team to thrive in the Eastern Conference. Marc Stein of the New York Times reported during an appearance on ESPN’s “Rich Eisen Show” in 2019 that Leonard not only reached out to Kyrie and KD before George but he also talked with Butler, who decided to take a lonely path to South Beach and join the Heat.
“Basically, the whole week of free agency is when he zeroed in on Paul George. Ya know, he didn’t start there. He made a run at Jimmy Butler first, and that was going on even during the playoffs. And he also explored Kevin Durant. ‘Kevin, would you come to the Clippers with me?’ … We’ve known the Clippers have wanted Kawhi for a very long time. But Kawhi wanted to be joined by an elite-level player. And I’m not trying to suggest that Paul was his third choice. They’re obviously friends and he loves Paul George, but Paul George wasn’t gettable. He has three more years on his contract, two before a player option. So you wouldn’t have targeted Paul George first because even Kawhi Leonard wouldn’t have thought he was available.”
Was #KawhiLeonard courting @Yg_Trece the whole time?
How did this stealth #Clippers deal come about? @TheSteinLine dropped knowledge: pic.twitter.com/mXIWE39XNh
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) July 8, 2019
Seeing how things are now, some would be convinced the three other candidates were better than Paul George. After he left the Indiana Pacers, he wasn’t able to get past the first round of the playoffs with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Now, he’s showing that ‘Playoff P’ was someone who only existed in Indy.
Butler is about to sweep the Pacers with the Miami Heat, who look like one of the favorites to come out of the East this season. Irving and Durant are getting ready for the next season with the Nets while PG is struggling to find his best shape in the bubble.
Nothing would please the Clippers fans more than seeing George thriving in the postseason, but that hasn’t been the case so far.
