Paul George Reveals New Details About Nearly Becoming a Raptor

Paul George says he and Kawhi Leonard nearly teamed up together on the Toronto Raptors during the summer of 2019

Mar 22, 2019; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard (2) battles with Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George (13) during the first quarter at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports / Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

Supposedly the Toronto Raptors nearly kept Kawhi Leonard and landed Paul George in the summer of 2019.

The truth of it all probably depends on who you ask, but according to George, there was a real possibility he and Leonard were going to pair up with the Raptors.

“I was close to going to Toronto,” George said on his podcast Podcast P with Paul George. “We were deciding to go to Toronto or the Clippers. Ultimately the Clippers put something better, you know a better package together, a better trade package together that sent me to LA but I was close. I was close. He was gonna re-sign to Toronto and we were just gonna go to Toronto.”

Reports at the time suggested the Oklahoma City Thunder were asking for Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and four unprotected first-round picks for George and Russell Westbrook, according to Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star. Toronto reportedly felt it was being used as leverage by Oklahoma City as a means of squeezing the most out of Los Angeles that summer.

The Clippers eventually paid up, moving Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari, five unprotected first-round picks, and two pick swaps to the Thunder to acquire George.

George said conversations about potentially pairing up began shortly after Toronto won the 2019 championship. Leonard called George and asked George what he planned to do with his future, George said. At the time, George had just signed a new deal with the Thunder, but Leonard suggested to George that people were trying to leave Oklahoma City.

That was the start of what became a whirlwind offseason, George said. Once the Clippers acquired George, Leonard signed as a free agent, and Los Angeles became one of the Western Conference’s most dominant teams on paper.

In reality, it never quite worked out as the Clippers had hoped. Leonard couldn’t stay healthy and after five seasons together, George opted to leave Los Angeles as a free agent this summer, joining the Philadelphia 76ers on a four-year max contract.