Paul George sat out a rare game Saturday night against the Boston Celtics. They had played the night before in Philadelphia, and lost in overtime. And sometime during that game, he turned his ankle. Just don’t ask him when.
“I don’t necessarily know what happened or how it happened,” he said Saturday after another loss. “I just remember hobbling after the play.
“I feel fine. It’s a day-to-day thing. Just a little soreness.”
When George, spoke with reporters for two minutes, he had tape on his left ankle that was sprained. During the game, he sat in a folding chair by the bench in street clothes.
“I really couldn’t move off it,” he explained. “I couldn’t turn my ankle, I couldn’t cut if I wanted to. I had a hard time walking this morning. I knew I probably wasn’t going to be able to go tonight but I gave it a shot.”
Excluding the 2014-15 season, George has missed 23 regular-season games in the five seasons since his rookie year.
[PG sent flowers, apology note to girl hit by basketball]
The Pacers need option no. 1 back. He’s averaging 21.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. That was especially clear late in the game when they desperately needed someone to take over and essentially say, “I got this.”
“Still the same stuff,” George said of what he observed on the sideline. “No ball movement, very stagnant offense. … We didn’t make the necessary stops that we needed. We got to do a better job without fouling.”
Through ten games, they have four wins and six losses, including two in a row and three of their last four games. They have one good win (Chicago) and two bad losses (Brooklyn, Philadelphia).
Seven of their next eight games are at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Three of those are this week: Orlando, Cleveland, and Phoenix. They’ll try to begin a new streak Monday night with Frank Vogel and the Orlando Magic in town.
Guard Rodney Stuckey will miss his ninth straight game due to a right hamstring strain.