Paul George: How No. 13 Became the NBA's Most Surprising MVP Candidate
Indiana Pacers power forward Paul George’s mission to win the NBA’s most sought-after individual award remains unrealized—adding fuel to the fire that has ignited his remarkable resurgence this season.
“I want to be the MVP this year.”
These were the hopeful, yet confident words of Paul George during the Pacers’ media day session in late September.
No longer hampered by the serious leg injury that derailed his season last year, George has shattered all reasonable expectations for his return through the first 14 games of the 2015-16 NBA regular season.
Frank Vogel, Indiana Pacers head coach, stated that he believes George is the “best two-way player in the game” right now, according to the Washington Post.
“It’s tough to quantify in words,” 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.”
A noteworthy aside: George has posted these numbers, all while trying to learn how to play a new position for his team.
Traditionally, George has started at the small forward position, guarding players like Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant and LeBron James. However, this season the Pacers are focused on running more “small-ball” lineups with their three guards—George Hill, Monta Ellis and C.J. Miles—which has necessitated the shift for George.
Originally hesitant about the move to power forward, George told Sam Amick of USA Today that “it’s definitely a change” for him.
“Um, you know it’s, uh, I was open for—to try it out,” George said. “It’s definitely a change. It’s something new. We’ll see how it goes. As the season goes, it might be better for me to just be at my regular position. But I told them I was open to the situation, and (we’ll) see where it goes.”
Pacers team president Larry Bird believes the move could benefit George in the long run.
“Coming off this injury that he’s coming off of, I think it’d be a good year to try it because he can guard some threes, but he won’t have to do it all the time,” Bird told the media. “It gives him a year to get stronger and healthier. I think it’ll be a big plus for him and our team.”
He added that the move to power forward could also improve George’s offensive prowess on the court.
“I just think offensively, it’s going to be one of the greatest feelings he’s ever going to have,” Bird said.
So far, Bird looks an awful lot like a prophet.
George is playing arguably the best basketball of his young career. He’s averaging career highs in points (25.9), rebounds (8.4), assists (4.8), three-point shooting (45.7%), field goal shooting (45.8%) and player efficiency rating (25.8).
In fact, George considers himself a better player today than he was before his leg injury occurred.
“I feel like I’m better,” George told Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post. “I think a year away from the game, you learn—you grow—regardless if I was on the court or not. You just get a chance to really observe and be a student of the game at that point when you’re sitting out. So I think that was the little bit that I needed, the push that I needed. I worked hard that summer, going into the season. Granted I got hurt, but I feel like that year away was what I needed to just learn.”
Here are some early season highlights of Paul George in action, courtesy of the NBA:
George has received high admiration from many of his colleagues in the past—but none more than from four-time league MVP LeBron James.
“He's going to be a great one,” James told Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “I thought he had some unbelievable talent back [in 2009] when I met him. He went to a school that no one really paid attention to. But I'm one of those guys who stays up late at night and watches those games. I knew him.”
If George had “unbelievable talent” back in 2009, his talent now can only be described as off the charts.
James prides himself in recognizing talent in young athletes, and that was one of the first things that drew his attention to the existence of Paul George.
“I’m very good at knowing talent, I guess,” James said of George, in his 2014 interview with GQ. “I knew he could be really, really good. I had a couple of conversations with him. I just see talent in a guy.”
The James-George rivalry has been well-documented over the years.
It’s rooted in an epic duel the two had during the 2012-13 Eastern Conference Finals. James, then a member of the Miami Heat, went toe to toe with George for a full seven-game series that featured several incredible back-and-forth sequences between the two superstars.
Then, George suffered his potentially career-ending leg injury, and their rivalry was forced to be put on hold while George underwent rehab.
After hearing news of the injury, James reached out to George in a heartfelt message on Instagram, revealing the profound respect he has for his young rival.
“I sent out that Instagram post when Paul George got hurt, saying, you know, I need him back on the court,” James told reporters. “I need it for our competitive games. I'm going to miss that. Paul George is one guy when he's out on the floor you got to account for because he's really good.”
But George would disagree with James on one point.
He doesn’t believe he’s "really good" anymore—he believes he’s the best.
“Myself,” George told Sam Amick of USA Today, when asked which player is the best in the league. “I honestly feel that this is my time to prove it. There’s always going to be people’s opinions. There’s always going to be people thinking otherwise. But this is my time to prove it, and I’m ready. I’m ready to show the world.”
Show the world, Paul.
You have our attention.
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