Larry Bird drafted Paul George and has helped him blossom into an All-Star and the foundation of the Pacers franchise. Now the team president says he has no intention of letting George play anywhere but Indiana with a flat declaration that the team is ready to step up and pay the forward whatever it takes. Bird told the Indianapolis Star that the ball is in George’s hands:
The Indiana Pacers president wants to sign George to a max contract – and he’ll do it as soon as his star player is ready.
“I know he don’t want to talk about it all year and I don’t either,” Bird said. “We want Paul here and we know what it’s going to cost and what it’s going to take. If Paul wants to get a deal done, we will. It’s a max deal. There’s no others, so there’s no use talking about it. If he wants it, he’s got it.”
George would not discuss his contract situation Wednesday but is expected to give an update Monday during the team’s media day. Before George left for the Summer Olympics in August, he had conversations with Bird and the front office about his renegotiation options. George said then that the conversations were a good sign, but that a new deal was not close to being reached.
George, 26, is entering the prime of his career and is under contract for $18.1 million this upcoming season. He is set to earn $19.3 million next season with a player option for $20.5 million in 2018-19, according to HoopsHype.com. George can decline the player option and sign a four-year extension beginning Sunday, as Houston Rockets star James Harden did earlier this summer.
