Paul George‘s name frequently popped up after Gordon Hayward‘s ankle injury during his first game as a member of the Celtics. Like Hayward, George has suffered a really rough leg injury in the past, so if anyone knows what Boston’s star forward is going through, it would be Oklahoma City’s recently-acquired All-Star.
Back in 2014, George was trying out for a spot on the United States national team prior to the FIBA Basketball World Cup. The team held a scrimmage, and at one point, George landed awkwardly and suffered a gruesome fracture in his leg. It led to the scrimmage getting canceled and George missing the entirety of the 2014-15 NBA season.
So when it came to getting advice on how to proceed after something like this, it would have made sense for Hayward to reach out to George. He didn’t get to do that, though, because George got in touch with him immediately after he went down.
“Paul and I have had a good relationship since we were drafted in the same class,” Hayward says. “I was there in the gym when he did his leg and I know that he knows first hand exactly what it’s gonna be like, exactly what it’s gonna take to be back and get back to 100 percent. We’ve talked back-and-forth, and I’m sure he’s somebody that I can lean on because the mental side, he says, is the toughest part.”
Hayward also published a piece on his Facebook account in which he praised George for reaching out, saying “He knows better than anyone, maybe, exactly what it is I’m going through, and will be going through. I’m thankful that he reached out right away, and that’s he’s someone I can continue to talk to.”
