No other NBA player was more affected by the bubble than Paul George. His reputation took a major hit as he struggled to get anything going throughout the playoffs, especially in the wake of the Los Angeles Clippers’ epic meltdown vs. the Denver Nuggets.
George couldn’t back up the talk and earn that ‘Playoff P’ distinction. He mocked the Portland Trail Blazers before the playoffs, just to go home in the second round and vastly underperforming.
However, Paul George is still one of the best two-way players in the league and he should have plenty of value in the trade market, assuming the Clippers are willing to break their roster up after hiring Tyronn Lue as their new coach.
Shaquille O’Neal Says The Clippers Should Flip Paul George For Two Players
That’s why Shaquille O’Neal believes that the Los Angeles Clippers would be better off landing more role players instead of having Kawhi Leonard share touches with Paul George, as he recently told TMZ:
“You gotta use [Paul George] to get 2 good solid players because I need Kawhi [Leonard] to be the man. See Kawhi, I don’t want Kawhi to delegate. See, when Kawhi was with Toronto he knew he was the man, everybody knew he was the man. Now you got one guy that thinks he’s the man, one guy that is the man,” Shaq said.
The Clippers traded away a lot of picks and young players to pair George with Kawhi so perhaps they’d be wary of moving him so quickly. Then again, Shaq does have a valid point in his assessment.
Los Angeles Clippers need a quality playmaker that can lead the offense and get Kawhi the shots he wants and needs. They already have enough shooters and defenders to make up for George’s loss, so they should at least consider it.
