Report: Cavs rejected Pacers' George-for-Irving offer multiple times

It wasn't that long ago that the Cleveland Cavaliers were unwilling to trade Kyrie Irving.

The club was in hot pursuit of Indiana Pacers swingman Paul George after he informed his team he wouldn't return after next season, and preferred to play for his hometown Los Angeles Lakers.

However, Cleveland refused to make its starting point guard available in a trade for George, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst and Zach Lowe, despite the Pacers pushing for such a deal multiple times.

While they were turned down for George-for-Irving straight up, the Cavaliers instead offered to send back power forward Kevin Love. It's believed that Cleveland, Indiana, and the Denver Nuggets had tentatively agreed to a three-team swap centered on Love and George, but Pacers general manager Kevin Pritchard backed out before trading his best player to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Windhorst and Lowe's recent report runs counter to an earlier ESPN story that said the Cavaliers floated Irving in trade packages for both George and Jimmy Butler. The 25-year-old All-Star was reportedly upset when he caught wind of those rumors, and kept them in mind when he decided to request a trade.

The Cavaliers reportedly believe it's "almost inevitable" they'll grant Irving's wish by dealing him, and picked up a possible replacement Tuesday when they signed free-agent point man Derrick Rose.

Irving notched a career-high 25.2 points per game on 47.3 percent shooting from the field and 40.1 percent from long range last season. He has two guaranteed years left on his contract that will see him earn about $39 million.