The sixth annual Knox Indy Pro Am was set to go out with a bang. Led by Pacers swingman Paul George, the final week (Aug. 9) had more than a half dozen NBA players locked in to play in the season finale.
The Knox Indy Pro Am was founded in 2009.
However, out of respect for Paul George following his horrific leg injury, it has been cancelled, founder and director Carlos Knox informed VigilantSports.com on Monday.
The showcase, featuring a whole cast of familiar names, was spearheaded by George. It was his idea. He wished to give Indy something special to watch during the offseason.
“Got something in store for y’all in a couple weeks Indy!” George tweeted on July 23.
It was also going to be the final time that he would play with Lance Stephenson, who was in his 2010 draft class. After four years together, Stephenson became a free agent and opted to sign with the Charlotte Hornets.
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George was a fan of the league, had been a spectator in previous years, and was a participant back in 2011 during the NBA lockout. Even being a two-time All-Star and max-contract guy, George didn’t shy away from Pro Ams. Early last month, George played in the renowned Drew League out in Los Angeles.
Sloan scored 22 points in his Knox Indy Pro Am debut.
The names that were expected to take part included Stephenson, Chris Copeland, Donald Sloan, Jeff Teague, Josh McRoberts, Jordan Crawford, and Reggie Jackson. The latter two have the same agent as PG.
It wasn’t just Knox making phone calls to get guys committed. George wanted this event. He made calls. He had something very special in place.
But it now won’t happen because of George’s freak incident while playing in an intrasquad scrimmage with USA Basketball.
And understandably so. It wouldn’t feel right.
“He was really looking forward to playing with Lance one last time and had a lot of surprises in store for local basketball fans,” Knox said of George in a statement late Monday. “In my mind, it wasn’t right to continue the league without him.”
Refunds will be provided via PayPal for those who purchased advanced tickets.
In what turned out to be the fourth and final week of this summer’s edition of the Knox Indy Pro Am last Saturday, George’s teammate Donald Sloan scored 22 points and dished out six assists while wearing No. 24 in honor of his injured teammate.
This summer’s Knox Indy Pro Am was a success, with AND-1 on board for the first time as the presenting sponsor. The league, which held games every Saturday night for the past four weeks, highlighted by Indiana and Purdue alumni game, returned to IUPUI after a one-year hiatus.