One of the biggest decisions surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason is that of star LeBron James. He is eligible to become a free agent if he opts out of the final year of his contract. Many around the league believe that James will indeed opt out but return to the Lakers on a new deal.

But what if James were to actually depart? Where would the Lakers go from there?

ESPN’s Chris Herring suggested Los Angeles could look at a familiar name if James were to leave Los Angeles as a free agent. That would be forward Paul George, who has spent the last five seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers.

“If the Lakers lose James, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them move extremely quickly to hold things together. The clearest way to do so would be maxing out George, who, even at 34, still stands out as one of the NBA’s best two-way players. At three deflections per game on defense, he ranked among the league’s top 10 in that regard, while also logging a career-best mark from three-point range at 41.3% on nearly eight tries per game.”

The biggest issue would be that the Lakers would probably have to do a sign-and-trade with George. Even if James were to leave, the Lakers wouldn’t have the cap space to sign a player like George to a deal.

George wouldn’t be the worse option to replace James but the Lakers would be a worse team. He has also been injury-prone over the years, much like Anthony Davis.

Additionally, the Clippers would likely make things tough for George to come to the Lakers, complicating matters. While the dream of George could be nice, pairing him with the Lakers may be a few years too late.