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Former Lakers coach would give up the farm for Paul George

Paul George

Byron Scott was never really in a decision-making role during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers. Sure the former head coach decided who he played and how he utilized his talent, but the Lakers’ front office brought together his roster.

In the end, Scott’s short-lived two-year tenure came to an end following the 2015-16 season. All said, he posted a disastrous 38-126 record.

There’s likely not many fans in L.A. that want to hear Scott’s opinion on the team, but he more than offered it in a recent interview on Sirius XM NBA Radio.

That may seem a bit absurd on the surface, but Scott did delve a bit further in-depth during an interview with Lakers Nation on Thursday.

“Magic (Johnson) has said Paul George’s name on a few occasions, so I’m just going by what I hear. I think Paul George has pretty much said he would love to play in L.A., so I’m just putting two and two together and I think it would be great for the city,” Scott said. “I think it would be great for Paul George who grew up idolizing and rooting for the Lakers to be able to go back and play for a team that he loves. It would be a big splash for Earvin.”

Johnson took over as the Lakers’ chief decision maker back in February after the team fired general manager Mitch Kupchak. It became immediately known that Johnson was interested in acquiring George from the Indiana Pacers. At about the same time, George himself was placed on the trade block.

Interestingly enough, the All-Star forward has reportedly told people that he wants to return to his Southern California roots to play for the Lakers (more on that here).

Scott might very well be on to something here. If Johnson is hellbent on making a splash in his first offseason as the Lakers’ president, what better idea than to bring back a hometown kid?

The issue here is that Los Angeles might not have enough assets to acquire George. It’s not something Scott has to worry about as an outside observer, but Johnson himself might need to get creative.

Two primary trade pieces would be former lottery picks D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle. Would Johnson be willing to give up both players for George? Assuming the Lakers land within the top three in next week’s lottery, that’s an asset Johnson also might have at his disposal.

This is definitely something to keep an eye on as the playoffs draw to a conclusion and the offseason gets going around the NBA. We are darn sure the Lakers will be active one way or another.

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