NBA News Roundup, Friday, September 20th: Suprise details emerge regarding Paul George's exit from the OKC Thunder, Update on Golden State's pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo and more
The 2019-20 NBA season will get underway in just over a month, and plenty could happen ahead of the new campaign. Notable free agents such as Carmelo Anthony, Kenneth Faried, and J.R. Smith remain without teams, and it is possible that a contending team could make a move ahead of opening night.
Meanwhile, big names such as Kevin Love, Steven Adams, and Bradley Beal have been linked with trades, and the Miami Heat is believed to be among the teams looking to make a big move in the coming weeks. So, with the potential for plenty to happen, here is all the latest NBA rumors and news you need to know for September 20th.
Oklahoma City Thunder were looking to trade Paul George
The opening week of free agency provided plenty of surprising moves, and Paul George's trade to the Los Angeles Clippers from the Oklahoma City Thunder seemingly came out of nowhere. Nevertheless, during an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Doc Rivers claimed that the Thunder were the ones that wanted to break up their team:
We did know that Oklahoma City wanted to break their team up, so that helped. But we didn't know if we could get him. We just showed him guys that we thought would match him and when he saw Paul George's name he said, 'I want to play with him.
The Thunder and Clippers agreed a blockbuster trade on July 5th - with George heading to LA in return for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, forward Danilo Gallinari and five future draft picks. George had signed a new four-year deal with the Thunder last summer, although the team was comfortably beaten in the first round of the playoffs for the second season in a row.
PG13 will now form an All-Star pairing with Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, and the Clippers enter the campaign among the favorites to take home the title.