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Highlights from Paul George's International Media Call

Pacers forward Paul George spoke with reporters from across the globe on Friday morning in an international media conference call organized by the NBA. George answered a variety of questions from reporters from several countries around the world, including Australia, China, France, Germany, Nigeria, and the Philippines.

George talked about his comeback from injury, his excitement to participate in the All-Star Game next weekend in Toronto, and his assessment of the Pacers' season-to-date. Below are some highlights from the call.

On his All-Star Selection:
"This is going to be probably the one that touches me the most."

On being a part of Kobe Bryant's last All-Star Game:
"I'll definitely be wanting to play my best...It's me and Kobe's last go-around in the All-Star Game. I'm just looking forward to enjoying that moment."

On coming back from an injury that sidelined him for most of last season:
"I expect a lot from myself. After the injury, going into the summer, I expected to return to form. I expected to be my old self…I did see myself being back to where I am now."

On the evolution of style of play in the NBA:
"Certainly the game is changing. Taller guys and longer guys really have the guard skillset nowadays. The game is transitioning to where you're playing further and further from the basket...It's almost like you just have four guards now and one big man...I think at this rate, it's only going to transition to more and more bigger guards and more perimeter-oriented games."

On his plans for All-Star Weekend:
"What I'm looking forward to in Toronto is just being back in that moment, being back hanging with the guys, being back playing in front of a lot of fans, playing in front of a great crowd in Toronto. You cherish those moments."

On how the Pacers have performed this season:
"We all here in Indiana think we should be a lot better than we are. We've lost a lot of close games that we possibly should have won...But I don't think we're that bad off. We've challenged every team, we've challenged all the best teams with tough games."

On where the Pacers rank in the Eastern Conference:
"I think we definitely should be one of the top-echelon teams in the East...The East is competitive this year. Every team that is slotted where they're at right now is deserving of that position."

On the Pacers' new starting five:
"We have a group that's playing well. Our starting lineup is playing really well right now and it's good that we're getting chemistry and experience together…We'll be pretty happy and satisfied at the end of the year."

On the Pacers center Ian Mahinmi:
"He's definitely had a big year for us. He's definitely a huge piece for us and we're very happy to have him here."

On whether he deserves to be a bigger part of the MVP conversation:
"If we won the games that we should have, if we were where we were supposed to be, then yeah. But right now I'm not doing a good enough job of finishing games for this club...I wouldn't even be satisfied if I was in the conversations right now."