Pacers’ O’Neal indicates desire to trade to Lakers next season

Jermaine O’Neal has officially declared his desire to sport a gold and purple jersey this season. The NBA Indiana Pacers forward told Sports Illustrated in an exclusive interview that he would prefer no to be a part of the Pacers’ “youth movement” next year and said it would be in his and the teams best interest for him them to part ways, according to the Aug. 6 story on the publication’s Web site. O’Neal’s agent  issued an official statement saying that his client had not, as of yet, requested a trade to the Lakers, however Pacers president Larry Bird did not rule out that possibility, according to SportsIllustrated.com.

Last season was one of O’Neal’s best, scoring an average 19.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game. The 28-year-old  NBA star also told Sports Illustrated that if he could pick one destination, it would be LA. “I love LA,” he said. “I normally train here every summer. The last two summers I haven’t trained here because I got hurt, but I love it here. My daughter loves it. My wife loves it. This is one of the prime places that I I were to be traded, I would allow Indiana to trade me here.” As prospects begin to look up for the Los Angeles this season, don’t miss out on Lakers tickets – visit Stubhub.com and purchase them ahead!

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