What will be next for Paul George ? Not extended by the Clippers, the rear/winger has the opportunity to test the market and the Sixers particularly dream of associating him with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid.
In his podcast, “PG13” looked back on this season, which ended with a new injury to Kawhi Leonard…
“We had a lot of ups, and a lot of downs. At the start, we were good then we made the trade and we took a speed bump. We couldn't win, I think we lost five games in a row (following the arrival of James Harden) then Russ (Westbrook) took the initiative to come off the bench. And we found life. But during these five defeats, we tried to find solutions. We weren't taking any beatings, not that I remember anyway, but we just didn't know how to win those games yet.” he remembers.
Subsequently, Paul George recalls that the Clippers had a superb period, with 31 victories in 39 games which had completely revived Tyronn Lue's training.
“We were in this phase, where we were winning, where we were playing well, and then I think we hit this wall where the opponents started to understand who the Clippers were, by studying us well. Our defense struggled to function and our offense was less good, from a spacing or movement standpoint. Then Kawhi got injured, and from there we were just trying to finish strong and hold on, because we knew there was a chance he could come back in the playoffs. But we came across a good team from Dallas, who understood what we were doing. »
Without Nicolas Batum and Robert Covington, the Leonard/George duo more exposed
The Mavericks thus deprived Paul George and James Harden of rhythm, forcing them to let go of the ball. But the winger also suggests that the transfer of James Harden unbalanced the team, and the roles.
“The most difficult thing is that we started the season strong. We were hot, everyone played well, there was energy. It was the first time we were all healthy, plus Russ. It was the emergence of that, when me and Kawhi were healthy, and Russ was settled. It was like a new start, with what we thought would work. And then we made the trade for James and it's not his fault that we suffered, in my opinion, but what was a little forgotten was that we lost RoCo (Robert Covington), we lost Nico (Batum). They were our “glue guys”, our defenders. And we play small, they had the size to allow us to do it. It wasn't about getting James, it was about losing these guys. KJ Martin too, who brought energy, young legs. »
Nicolas Batum and Robert Covington were thus valuable in Tyronn Lue’s “small ball”. With their size and scope, they could occupy the position of “pivot” in a very offshore system. Above all, they did the defensive work in the shadows which relieved the two Californian leaders.
“When we got to the end of the season, we weren’t as good as we could have been” concludes Paul George. “Losing these guys hurt us. RoCo was huge for us, Nico too. They were going to get the rebounds, block the shots, they were doing the rotations, they were taking care of the defense. Around me, Kawhi and Russ, they were doing a lot of the dirty work. And there, with James, who is a great offensive talent, it was me and Kawhi who became the dirty work specialists. All while having to bring in points.”
