Paul George Puts Up Another Clutch Performance for the Indiana Pacers
Paul George scored 15-straight points as the Indiana Pacers closed out the Portland Trail Blazers in a comeback victory.
Paul George did more than just on Saturday night. He reminded everyone around the NBA that as long as he is on the court, the Indiana Pacers can win games.
In a game where the Pacers had trailed by as much as 20 points, they were looking at losing to the Trail Blazers after taking the lead late in the second half. Indiana’s bench (plus Thaddeus Young) had slowly erased Portland’s advantage and taken a one-point lead in the fourth quarter, but a quick 7-0 run by the Trail Blazers started to dash Indiana’s hopes.
Then it began to happen.
Myles Turner knocked down a pair of free throws to end the Trail Blazers’ run, but it was Paul George that closed the door on Portland.
George scored the Pacers’ next 15 points — shooting 6 of 10 from the field and 3 of 3 from the foul line — to lead a 19-6 run for Indiana. Rodney Stuckey capped things off with another pair of free throws, but George had already finished off the Trail Blazers.
The defense — both Paul George’s and the team’s — stepped up in these final minutes too, limiting Portland to 1 of 9 shooting while outrebounding and out blocking them, too.
One play epitomized the fourth quarter.
Maybe Turner can secure that rebound, but it was Paul George who made sure the Pacers didn’t lose it. It was a team effort in the end, but PG made sure the game ended in an exclamation point, not a question mark according to the Indianapolis Stars’ Nate Taylor.
More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds
George illustrated his own perseverance in order to have an opportunity for his put-back basket.
He used his legs sprint into the paint after he missed a midrange jumper. The game-winning basket was possible because Myles Turner fought hard enough to give George a chance to collect his own offensive rebound. Once he had control of the ball, George turned his body and jumped over Lillard and McCollum to finish his emphatic dunk.
“I just wanted to crash (the backboard) because I knew they were going to call a timeout, so the play would have been dead right there,” George said had the Trail Blazers collected the defensive rebound. “That was an opportunity to be aggressive. But Myles kept it alive, kept that ball active for that split second for me to go after it. I was able to snatch it.”
Hopefully, the Pacers don’t have to rely on him to save them too often, but having someone of Paul George’s caliber turns close games into wins.
His ankle injury took him out of the Pacers’ rotation for a while, but when you compare his clutch numbers to the rest of the NBA, last night wasn’t a big surprise.
Despite taking the second most shots in these clutch situations, he shoots 58.6% from the field and 57.1% on 3-pointers when games are close in the final minutes.
Last season’s opening round of the playoffs was a tour-de-force for Paul George. The Toronto Raptors won in seven games, but PG was arguably the best player on any team in the first round.
This season’s additions look to give the Pacers a better chance in the playoffs — if they make it —‚but as long as Indiana has George, they have a chance to win almost any game.
This season has seen its fair share of disappointments from an inconsistent Indiana team, but Paul George gave the fans plenty to smile about with the comeback win against the Trail Blazers. Here’s to hoping he sticks around when his contract expires.
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