When Paul George snapped his leg in the summer of 2014 exhibition game, we spent a few minutes wondering if the Pacers wing would ever walk again. Perhaps it was the grisly way his leg buckled on the stanchion, but we overreacted and so did most people watching. All our collective hearts sank because it seemed to mean the end of the career for one of the most promising stars in the NBA. None of that concern was alleviated when George returned for a handful of games to end the 2014-15 NBA season a husk of his former all-star self, or when he sat out USA Basketball tryouts. Most wrote off the Pacers because Paul just wasn’t going to be the top-10 player he looked like he was about to become before breaking his leg.
Except, we were all so wrong. Against the Wizards on Friday night, George dropped a season-high 40 points on a ridiculous 14-of-19 from the field and 7-of-8 from beyond the arc. With C.J. Miles starting at power forward, George doesn’t need to bang opposing fours as much, and he’s back to that same gazelle stride, smooth pull-up, and dizzying quickness that sneaks up on you because it looks so effortless. He’s also averaging over 25 points a night, shooting a career high from the field and from beyond the arc and the Pacers have started to find their groove in the last two weeks while shooting up the Eastern Conference standings.
John Wall thinks George is a better shooter, too, but said after Friday night’s game that he doesn’t attack the basket as well.
“He’s not really the same Paul George attacking-the-basket wise,” Wall told the Washington Post. “But he’s definitely a better shooter than the way he was before he had his injury.”
While Wall’s back-handed compliment was interesting, the post-game quote that stuck out the most came from Paul’s coach.
“It’s tough to quantify in words,” Pacers Coach Frank Vogel said. “I mean, he just does so much. He’s capable of going for 40, carrying the offensive load and being the best defensive player on either team. He’s a special player, and the best two-way player in the game. We’re a different team with him out there.”
Implicit in that statement is the notion George is the best all-around player in the world. The NBA is the best league on the planet and if he’s the best two-way player in the NBA, he’s the best two-way player in the world. Basketball is played on both sides of the court, and “best two-way player” is just an empirical — though more verbose — way of stating it.
LeBron might have something to say about that, too. Kawhi Leonard, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, might also lay claim to such a blustery designation. It’s a wholly subjective argument though, and Vogel is obviously biased, but George has returned to his old form and he’s doing it at an elite level again on both ends.
Synergy ranks him in the 86th percentile on points per possession ending in a turnover, foul or shot; he’s in the 70s (still considered very good) when you add in possessions that end in an assist. PG is also running pick-and-rolls on 25 percent of his possessions, as he’s become the primary focal point in almost every Pacers set in the half-court.
On the other end of the court, George has been even better, if we’re looking at it from Synergy’s perspective: defensive possessions where PG’s man either shoots, turns the ball over or gets fouled. George gives up a scant 0.66 points per possession, good for a ranking in the 90th percentile.
On both ends he’s elite. Even if his defensive real plus minus, feels low, he’s still No. 10 in ESPN’s more advanced on/off percentages that takes surrounding teammates into account for their calculations.
But we think this is more about a coach boosting his star’s confidence than it is about Vogel’s actual objective opinion. Doc Rivers did the same thing last year when he kept extolling the virtues of DeAndre Jordan’s defense and championed him hard and loud for Defensive Player of the Year.
Despite all this, Paul George is in the discussion for MVP after the last two weeks, and we can’t wait to see where this season takes him and the Pacers.
