George sets the record straight

After the game, Devean George explained his reasoning on not consenting to the Jason Kidd trade. After consulting with his agent throughout the day, he said the issue came down to two parts. The first: “I just want to play.” The second: “Would you want to leave if you could get minutes here? Absolutely not.”

“It made me want to stand firm,” he said after playing a game-high 43 minutes in the 109-97 loss to the Suns.

George is headed to Los Angeles over the All-Star break to collect his thoughts and clear his mind. He acknowledged speaking with Nets coach Lawrence Frank and team executive Kiki Vandeweghe.

“I’ve been in trade talks every year in my career almost, but nothing like yesterday,” George said.

He added that there does not appear to be any bad blood among his teammates or the coaching staff. It’s just business.

“It wasn’t anything personal,” he said. “It would be different if we were in here [the locker room] fighting.”

He also poked a little fun of his place in the events of the last two days.

“I never thought I’d be in position to throw the league into a frenzy,” he said with a smile.