Paul George says Lakers were ‘pissed’ they didn’t get a meeting

It’s been almost two months since Paul George decided to pass on joining the Los Angeles Lakers to re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder in free agency and while it might have stung at the time, everyone seems to have moved on. Everyone except for George, of course.

George was recently on the Short Story Long Podcast with Chris “Drama” Pfaff and during the interview, George talked about his decision to not sign with his hometown Lakers and the reaction from L.A.’s front office.

“L.A. was pissed at me,” George said. “I didn’t give Magic [Johnson] a meeting, which I understand. But at that point, I knew I wanted to give it another shot [in Oklahoma City]. I didn’t want to prolong it and waste people’s time.”

George, who aired a three-part docuseries on ESPN, said he didn’t want to prolong his free agency and waste people’s time. I’m not mad, I actually think it’s funny.

Despite how quickly George made his decision, he insists he considered the Lakers and even left the door open on coming home in 2022, when his four-year, max deal with OKC expires.

“Honestly, I wanted to, I wanted to come back home,” George said. “But I’m 28, I’ve still got another contract.”

So let me make sure I understand this correctly.

Paul George, who has talked about his desire to play for the Lakers since 2013, had the opportunity to sign with the Lakers in free agency almost exactly a year after he requested a trade to L.A. and he didn’t take it. He had the chance to play alongside LeBron James, arguably the greatest player of all time, in Los Angeles and he said “No thanks.”

Now he’s suggesting that he’s open to signing with the Lakers four years from now, when he’s 32 years old? Is that right?

George and the Thunder will visit STAPLES Center for the first and only time on January 2. If he thinks the front office was “pissed,” wait until he gets a load of the 19,000 fans in the stands that night.

You can follow this author on Twitter at @RadRivas.