2. Paul George
Not even when they manage to sign a first-tier free agent, superstar, and arguably the best player on the planet things are easy for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Last offseason, with a promising young core built through years of struggles and lucky draft lotteries, and massive max space available, enough to sign two max free agents, they were looking to turn the tide of the recent years.
For a year, Paul George was the clear star set to come back home after the rumors he spread around the league and even a tampering fine for the Lakers. The unknown was if anyone would have followed the forward in Los Angeles.
With a dramatic flipping, free agent LeBron James immediately chose to join the Lakers. At the same time, Paul George opted to re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder, ecstatic of his partnership with Russell Westbrook and convinced that the duo would be able to deliver a championship to OKC. General opinion was that he would have regretted this decision.
Fast forward one year and Paul George is actually in Los Angeles, but wearing the jersey of the rival team: The Los Angeles Clippers.
In one year, an unbelievable succession of events has happened. The San Antonio Spurs traded disgruntled All-Star Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors. George had an MVP year but the Thunder were tossed out of the first round of the playoffs. Toronto won the championship. Despite that, Leonard left the Raptors to play for his hometown team.
Kawhi recruited George to team up together in LA. After all the controversies and all the public statements about his love for the organization and his relationship with Westbrook, PG was unsatisfied with the outcome of his second season in OKC, and this time, jumped at the opportunity to go home and share the floor with a player of Leonard’s caliber.
Cooperating with the Thunder, making clear he no longer wanted to be part of the organization, he forced them to orchestrate a trade to send him to the Clippers, the team that will be head-to-head with the Lakers for the championship.
George will have the chance to see if he chose the right team in LA or if he made the biggest mistake of his career refusing to sign with the Lakers a year ago.