Paul George. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Paul George has harsh words on Clippers experience

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Jul 24, 2024 1:51 PM ET

Paul George grew up supporting the Clippers in a household full of Lakers fans in Palmdale, California. When he joined the Clippers in 2019, the All-Star forward spoke extensively about his lifelong dream of wanting to play for the Lakers' crosstown rivals in a city that bleeds Purple and Gold.

George, alongside Kawhi Leonard, was also determined to erase the Clippers' "stepchild" perception and build their own lane in the NBA and Southern California sports landscape.

Five years later, George is no longer a Clipper, and it's becoming increasingly clear that he endured a reality check during his stint with the franchise.

"Initially, coming back to L.A. — that was home — but it's not the same love [compared to Lakers]," George said on "Podcast P" this week. "When I was in L.A., they were like, 'Man, you should have been a Laker.' That's all I was hearing. It wasn't like, 'Welcome to the Clippers.'"

George said every day as a Clipper in Los Angeles was a reminder that he was playing for the "B Team."

Paul George says playing for the Clippers instead of the Lakers felt like he was playing for the "B Team."

( @PodcastPShow / h/t @Ralph_MasonJr )

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The Clippers and George went their separate ways after they endured a falling out in contract talks. George revealed the Clippers first offered him a two-year, $60 million extension he felt was "kind of disrespectful." He ultimately signed with the Sixers on a four-year, $211 million deal.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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