The 75 greatest NBA players of the 2010s, ranked

13) Paul George

NBA star Paul George got his start with the Indiana Pacers after being selected 10th overall in the 2010 draft. While it took a couple seasons for him to get going, he would have a terrific decade, averaging 19.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 604 games.

During the 2012–13 season, George made a big leap in his third year in the NBA, increasing his scoring average by 5.3 points up to 17.4 points and emerging as the Pacer's leading scorer. His offensive improvement as well as his defensive ability resulted in the Pacers making their first of consecutive Eastern Conference Finals. There, they squared off against LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Miami Heat. 

George and the then-up-and-coming Pacers took the Heat seven games, though they lost. The following year, George was even better, averaging 21.7 points per game and making his second all-star team, as well as the All-Defensive First Team and All-NBA Third Team.

Indiana would again meet up with the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals and again come up short that season. That summer, George participated in the FIBA World Cup and suffered an ugly injury that cost him most of the 2014–15 season. Incredibly, he was even better post-injury, posting 23.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game.

In the summer of 2017, he was surprisingly traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder and was paired with Russell Westbrook to close out the decade. In 2018-19, his final season with the team and the last season of the 2010s, George had the best year of his career, averaging 28 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and coming in third in MVP voting. All in all, he made a total of six all-star teams, five All-NBA teams, and four All-Defensive teams, proving PG-13 was one of the best wings of the era.