Paul George acknowledges Pacers, Warriors talked Klay Thompson deal

— -- Before All-Star forward Paul George was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder last month, the Indiana Pacers talked to the Golden State Warriors and offered him in a trade for Klay Thompson, George acknowledged during a conversation with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on SportsCenter on Thursday.

According to Wojnarowski, Golden State said no to the offer, and the talks with Indiana ended there.

George acknowledged it and said he was aware the Pacers talked to the Warriors.

"I would've looked forward to it, of just being in a good situation and a chance to compete for a championship," he told Wojnarowski. "But it didn't happen. It's still fun to team up with a special talent and have a chance to compete against that team."

George joked that he didn't think the trade would fly.

"Yeah, I think that would've been the Chris Paul-to-L.A. situation where they denied that trade," George said with a laugh, referring to the infamous 2011 deal that was vetoed by then-NBA commissioner David Stern.

The Pacers sent George to Oklahoma City for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis?on June 30.

In Oklahoma City, he'll be teamed with Russell Westbrook. George talked Thursday about how the Warriors have changed the game.

"We love being the alpha of our teams, but it's just not realistic that you're going to be able to do it alone," George said.

"You need help in this league. Back in the day, that's what made the league. Guys were winning championships, making their team better by themselves. They had pieces and they had a lot of help. But the league was spread out.

"Now you've got guys teaming up; the landscape has shifted a bit. In order to compete against that, you have to have guys that can compete at the same level as you. That's really what this league has come down to. [The Warriors] shifted the landscape a lot."