NBA – Paul George’s controversial statement : « I’d have a championship if not for him »

Par Joël Pütz | Journaliste sportif

Paul George, who has been in the league for nearly 15 years, has become a multiple All-Star but has never managed to win a championship. He believes that one specific player is primarily responsible… but not everyone will agree with that.

He’s come a long way since his draft, despite a terrible leg injury that nearly ended his career in 2014. Eleven years later, Paul George is still on the NBA court and his career is quite impressive. Starting out as a bench player with the Pacers, he’s become one of the biggest names in the league with nine All-Star Game nominations, a MIP, and six All-NBA selections.

Averaging over 20 points, 6 rebounds, and nearly two steals in his career, PG13 has accomplished far more than anyone expected. However, one accolade is still missing from the forward’s list of accomplishments: a championship ring. After 15 years and four different franchises, he has never done better than during his time in Indiana, where he played in two conference finals.

Paul George accuses LeBron of depriving him of a title with the Pacers

Remember that incredible Pacers team that featured Paul George, but also David West, George Hill, and of course, the iconic Lance Stephenson? In the early 2010s, they were nothing less than the main rivals of LeBron James’ Heat in the Eastern Conference. In a recent episode of The Pivot, the latter was accused by the Sixers star of depriving him of the Holy Grail:

I’m thinking about it the other day, like, had there not been a LeBron James, s**t I might have had one. Had we not played LeBron James, or there was no LeBron James, we might have had one in Indiana. I felt like the guy in the East. We played Carmelo, got Carmelo out of there. Played a tough Wizards team with John Wall and Bradley Beal. Nobody could come through us.

It’s true that LeBron broke a lot of hearts with Miami between 2010 and 2014, preventing anyone from representing the East in the Finals instead of the South Beach franchise. On the other hand, it’s hard to share Playoff P’s optimism when he claims that the Pacers could have won the big prize… Indeed, going to the NBA Finals is one thing; beating the winner of the Western Conference is quite another.

Could Indiana have beaten San Antonio in 2013 and 2014? That seems highly unlikely, given the Spurs’ collective strength at the time. As for 2011-12, even if PG and his teammates had beaten the Heat in the second round, they would have first had to defeat Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce’s Celtics in the conference finals. Either way, the forward would likely have come away empty-handed.