Paul George Trade Rumors: Nuggets Reportedly Made 'Monster Offer' to Pacers

The Denver Nuggets reportedly made a deadline-day push to acquire Indiana Pacers star forward Paul George on Thursday, but their pursuit came up empty.

Marc Stein and Chris Haynes of ESPN reported the Nuggets made a "monster offer," but it wasn't enough to entice the Pacers to discuss the idea further. Stein added Denver got informed it was "highly unlikely" George would be interested in staying there for the long haul.

Exact details about the Denver offer weren't immediately made public, but its reported last-ditch effort to make a blockbuster move comes out of left field. Most of the rumors in the 24 hours that led up to the deadline surrounded George's potential move to the Boston Celtics.

Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported Thursday the Celtics and Pacers were still in discussions, but Boston still hadn't reached the asking price either.

Indiana does have the leeway to play hardball. George remains under contract for another season with a cap hit just over $19.5 million for the 2017-18 season along with holding a player option for the following year, according to Spotrac.

The Pacers front office can wait until the offseason, see if there's any progress toward a long-term deal with the four-time All-Star selection and look to trade him if the contract talks stall out.

Based on the latest update from Wojnarowski, it appears that's the direction the franchise will head, barring a late change of heart Thursday afternoon:

George previously told Stein that being with a title contender, whether that's Indiana or another franchise, would be at the top of his list moving forward.

"Say what you want; I want to compete for something," George said. "It's frustrating just playing the game for stats or for numbers or to showcase yourself. Man, I want a chance to play for a chance to win a championship."

He added: "I wanted to be the first and want to be the first to be able to bring a championship to Indiana. So that's still on my mind ... and something I definitely want to achieve in Indiana."

Sam Amick of USA Today provided information about the California native's long-term plans:

In the short term, George would have provided a massive boost for the Nuggets as they attempt to earn the eighth seed in the crowded Western Conference playoff picture. They hold that coveted spot now, but there are five teams chasing them within 3.5 games.

Adding the league's eighth-rated small forward in player efficiency rating might have allowed them to pull away from the pack, depending on the size of the package heading to Indiana. But it would have been tough to give up a lot of key assets without a plan in place to get an extension done.