On Wednesday night, the Pacers saw the only thing that was perhaps more devastating than their eventual loss to the Grizzlies and subsequent elimination from contention for the playoffs — they saw Paul George carried off of the floor and into the locker room by his teammates.
Seeing PG wince in pain as he was helped off was indeed a jarring image, and rekindled imagery of the fateful day on the first of August. But from the top down, the choice to return Paul to action this season was one that inspired zero lingering regrets from Larry Bird, Frank Vogel, and PG himself. And luckily for George, the injury — which looked to be more serious than it was — turned out to be nothing more than a calf strain.
"I feel good, my calf is a little sore," said George.
There was no shortage of voices on social media suggesting that Paul George never should have played this season in the first place. Why risk it? Was it really necessary for him to play in six games?
"It gave me a lot (of confidence)," said George of his return. "I have a long way to go, but being out there put in perspective what I need to work on this summer. Which was the ultimate goal, to find the areas that I really could to improve at, and go from there."
In his limited minutes — just 15.2 per game — PG had a relatively high degree of success for a player coming off of an injury as severe as the broken leg he suffered. George averaged 8.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and shot 40.9 percent from 3-point range. So now, after testing the waters and calibrating where his body is at in its recovery, the two-time All-Star is ready to hit the summer in preparation of the season to come.
"What I can tell you about Paul George, as you all know, is the summertime is his time," said Vogel at his end-of-season presser. "That's where he gets after it and really tries to come back a different player every year. Injury or not."
That wasn't all Vogel said about PG though. He also said, numerous times, that he expects George to play some power forward next season as the Pacers attempt to reinvent their offense into one that plays smaller lineups and with a faster pace. This type of fundamental switch in philosophy will challenge George to become a different type of player on both offense and defense. Vogel, however, isn't worried about a drop-off on either end for George.
"We're not going to sacrifice defense to (play small)." Vogel said. "You look at what Paul George is capable of doing on the defensive end, and I think you could, in some ways, be better defensively with him at the four."
On offense, Vogel envisions that Paul's ability to stretch the defense out will give his team better spacing. "More room to go to work," he put it.
But a new role on offense and defense for PG will require a more targeted offseason workout for George, which is why, as team president Larry Bird explained, it was imperative for PG to be on the court this season. So he can better gauge what he needs to do during the summer, like a golfer tossing grass in the air to get a feel for the direction of the wind.
"He will heal, and he will get back to working out and doing the things necessary to getting better," Bird said. "He came back and was able to come back and play this year, which was good for him. I enjoyed it because I like to see him on the court."
Bird cautioned that although playing in games was a positive step for PG, he still has a long way to go. Still, if the PG that emerges from the offseason is in — or even close to — the form that made him one of the NBA's best two-way players, the expectations will be high for the 2015-16 Pacers.
Towards the end of Bird's presser, Bird was asked point blank, "Can you be a title contender next year?"
After a brief hesitation, Bird replied: "It depends on Paul George."
It's undoubtedly a lot of pressure to put on one player; one who less than a year ago suffered a traumatic injury, but PG insists he's up to the challenge.
"It's easy for me, because the summer is where i hang my hat on as far as where the real season is," George explained. "The offseason is where I've always improved. So i'm looking forward to another step and another chapter this offseason."