Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George had a disappointing return to Indiana against his old team.
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George has had a difficult time adjusting to his new team. George is sometimes third fiddle on the Thunder with Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony also needing the ball.
George is used to being the go-to man at all times during his days with the Indiana Pacers. That isn’t the case with the Thunder and will take some time to adjust to.
George has looked like his Pacers self a few times this season. In November, George put the team on his back when injuries struck. Steven Adams was sidelined and Carmelo Anthony missed a game, but George picked up the slack.
The two best games that George has had with the Thunder came during that stretch on one weekend. George willed his team to victory over the Los Angeles Clippers (42 points, nine rebounds and seven assists) and Dallas Mavericks (37 points, eight rebounds and five assists) on Nov. 10 and Nov. 12. He was masterful on both ends of the court.
People were excited to see if he could do that to his old team. The Thunder paid their lone visit of the season to the Pacers on Wednesday evening. A game that should’ve been one to remember for George is one that he would like to forget as soon as possible.
The Thunder were able to defeat the Pacers 100-95. However, George had very little to do with the victory as he played one of his worst games of the season.
George went 3-for-14 from the field, going 2-for-7 from 3-point land. The 21.4 percent from the field is the third-lowest mark that George has had this season. He did distribute the ball well, totaling five assists. George also had three steals, which was nice to see. However, his shooting numbers are what will stick out, as will his four turnovers.
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George has struggled to fit in alongside Westbrook and Anthony. He has been relegated to being a spot-up shooter for long stretches of times, similar to what Chris Bosh had to do with when the Miami Heat put together their Big 3. Unlike Bosh, this isn’t a role conducive to George’s skill-set, even though he has been an excellent spot-up shooter at times in his career.
The Pacers crowd was relentless Wednesday night with George. It all seemed to rattle George, who looked unsettled and unconfident throughout the game.
Luckily for PG-13, the night wasn’t a total loss. The Thunder did get the victory, which moved them one game closer to the .500 mark. With the win, the Thunder’s record now sit at 13-14 as they have gone 5-2 thus far in December.
George should personally thank Steven Adams. Adams had a monster game in picking up his teammate against his old team. Adams was the best player on the court, scoring 23 points with 13 rebounds.
Steven Adams powers @okcthunder on road with 23 PTS & 13 REB! pic.twitter.com/5EawfFMmsh
— NBA (@NBA) December 14, 2017
Russell Westbrook also registered a triple-double, scoring 10 points with 17 rebounds and 12 assists. Like George, he was dreadful from the field, making only three of his 17 shot attempts. Anthony wasn’t much better, as he shot 4-of-14 from the field.
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It wasn’t the prettiest performance from the Thunder, but they were able to get Paul George a win in Indiana, something that was probably very important to him. He will have better nights than the one against his old team, and the Thunder will need them. They look to be starting to turn a corner, as they are now in the eighth spot in the Western Conference.