What LeBron James recruiting Paul George means for Cavs
Trading for Paul George could indeed be the key to convincing LeBron James to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
LeBron James and Paul George could be teammates next season and could have been teammates this season, that much has been known for months. What wasn’t known was that James was recruiting George to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"James aggressively recruited George behind the scenes last summer, selling him on a future together in Cleveland, but the Cavs deal mysteriously fell apart before George was dealt to Oklahoma City."
That was the bombshell dropped by ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst on Thursday.
There are a few elements of this quotation that hold a particular importance:
(1) With reports surfacing over the summer that George was willing to play in Cleveland long-term and that, for a time, there was a deal in place to send George (along with Carmelo Anthony) to the Cavs in exchange for Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, it seems like James accomplished what he wanted to when selling George on winning rings in the Land.
(2) Because such a deal would have necessitated a trade of Irving, Love or both, it seems as if James was content with such a deal taking place. As a result, if George (or a similarly young and talented player) becomes available prior to the trade deadline, James seems to be fine with the prospects of Love being part of the trade package.
(3) George might be the key to keeping the King in Cleveland. He told reporters at Media Day he has no intention to leave the Land but would approach his upcoming free agency like a business decision. Business partner Maverick Carter has espoused assertions that James’ top priority is winning championships. When you add it all up, James seems to perceive the acquisition of George a winning move. That will certainly matter if George joins the Los Angeles Lakers, as he’s widely expected to do.
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While Irving has obviously been traded away already, Love remains on the team. The complexities of trading Love are interesting, though.
It’s not like the 13-14 Oklahoma City Thunder wouldn’t make the deal to acquire Love, Westbrook’s good friend (and roommate at UCLA).
George is on the final year of his contract and wants to compete for champions but both he and team are struggling on offense because the roster makeup has put him alongside two ball-dominant players who like to feel the game rather than think it.
As a result, if the trio didn’t gel instantly they would certainly need a full season to learn each other’s games and how they fit together. They don’t have that type of time, however.
As of December 15th, 2017, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a record below .500 and are in the bottom third of the league in both points per game and offensive rating. George is averaging 20.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.4 steals and 0.6 blocks per game but shooting just 41.2 percent from the field, the second-lowest mark of his career (George is shooting 40.4 percent on three-point attempts).
Russell Westbrook is shooting a career-low 38.9 percent from the field and Anthony is averaging career-lows in points per game (17.7) and field goal percentage (40.0). That’s not a recipe for success or satisfaction. In addition, with Westbrook soon-to-be 30-years-old and a player whose dominance is predicated on speed and athleticism rather than skill, the Thunder need to maximize Westbrook’s prime by placing him with players that he fits with.
Love, who has been stellar this season with averages of 19.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 0.7 steals per game, is shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 39.7 percent from three.
Because Love is a power forward who relies on players to set him up inside or behind the arc, he’s not a ball-dominant player; 74.7 percent of his shots have come off of assists this season. For comparison, 57.7 percent of George’s shots have been assisted this season and only 51.3 percent of his shots were assisted last season.
Love is the type of player that Westbrook, who seems to want the ball in his hands at nearly all times (only 20.8 percent of his shots have been assisted this season), needs beside him.
Especially with Love being a big that can play either post position and draw bigs out to the perimeter. Like he’s done for James, Love’s shooting ability will provide Westbrook with a lot of space to attack the rim.
Anthony should be able to play his usual iso-heavy game without a third iso player on the court but if he performs well as a catch-and-shoot option from a forward spot, Westbrook and the crew could be even more dangerous. This season, Anthony has been shooting 39.0 percent on catch-and-shoot threes.
Love, who has three years remaining on his contract, can be Westbrook’s sidekick for years to come.
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For the Cavs, trading Love for George is a risk due to George’s ability to fly the coop but he’s already shown a willingness to commit. Trading away Love also means that the Cavs will get smaller, which could mean more post-ups for James and an up-and-down playing style for the team. Both are positives with James’ efficiency in the post (50.0 percent shooting this season), ability to devastate defenses as the ultra-athletic super passer in the pick-and-roll and he and George’s ability to wreak havoc in transition (Flying Death Machine 2.0).
In addition, the Cavs will be more capable of scoring against great defenses thanks to George’s capabilities in isolation compared to Love’s. George is a lithe and springy jump shooter who can handle the rock and has shown flashes of incredibly impressive court vision when swarmed by defenders. Love can take players off-the-dribble on occasion, has nice touch on his jumpers and is a great passer but he doesn’t have nearly the level of speed, athleticism and ball-handling as George.
Athleticism that, when combined with George’s defensive instinct, could allow the Cavs to be as dominant a defensive unit as any team in the league.
The only negative is that the Cleveland Cavaliers will be missing their best rebounder and be forced to gang rebound in turn. It simply requires more effort and attentiveness on the part of the Cavs and both James and George have shown the ability to be elite rebounders in their career, so the disparity might not be as large as it could be for other teams that trade their top rebounder.
Ultimately, this could be a match made in Heaven and if the Thunder continue to struggle I wouldn’t be surprised to see Love moved for George. No matter how stellar the former has been, he has yet to be reliable on both ends of the court in a NBA Finals series.
George can be. If winning a championship is what’s most important to James, a George-Love swap could be the key to keeping the King in Cleveland.