Saturday, November 12 - Celtics at Pacers
Pregame – George A Last-Minute Scratch from Saturday's Game
INDIANAPOLIS – Paul George has been a major thorn in Boston’s side over the years, but Saturday night, just ahead of tip-off, the Celtics discovered they would not have to deal with him during this particular trip to Indianapolis.
An hour and 10 minutes ahead of the game, news broke out of the Pacers’ locker room that George will be unable to play because of a sprained ankle.
This is huge news for Boston, considering George absolutely torched them last season, having posted an average of 25.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.5 rebounds over four games.
But even without Indiana’s star player, Brad Stevens’ group should still have its hands full against a revamped Pacers offense.
“I think this has been a really potent group for a long time,” Stevens said before the news broke of George’s absence. “Obviously with the continued growth of Myles Turner, I think that expands everything.
“Then adding a guy like Jeff Teague with his ability to get inside the paint and make plays for himself and others. And having a second unit where you can throw the ball to Al (Jefferson) who is as good of a back-to-the-basket scorer as there is around. To compliment those guys who were already here; that’s a good offensive team.”
Even without George, Indiana still has a lot of scoring threats. Stevens rattled off a lengthy list of Pacers who have killed the Celtics in the past.
Thaddeus (Young), (Jeff) Teague, Al (Jefferson), Paul George, Monta Ellis… yeah, they’ve given us some trouble,” said Stevens. “They’ve given everybody trouble. Those guys are good players and I’m glad, when I look at it, that we’re not the only ones that they give trouble to.”
The first three names on that list are new additions to the Pacers, and so far they’ve been fitting in just fine. Typically it takes awhile for a team to mesh on the offensive end after adding significant players to its lineup, but those three have heavily contributed to an Indiana offense that is averaging 109.4 points per game.
“It hasn’t taken these guys very long, especially on that side of the floor,” said Stevens. “They’ve been awfully good on that side and they’ve got talented guys.”
While Indiana may be without its most talented guy tonight, it will still have a lot of offensive weapons it can turn tonight as it puts its unbeaten home record on the line against Boston.
- Taylor C. Snow