The lineup would allow the Pacers to play in transition and increase their offensive pace.
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Indiana’s possible starting lineup per Vogel- George Hill, Monta Ellis, C.J. Miles, George and Ian Mahinmi – is rather interesting. Whether George will be a true power forward is a matter of contention – SB Nation’s Indy Cornrows describes the position as power “fauxward” – but George will surely spend some time guarding larger opponents.
George, on the other hand, was pretty tepid about the idea. “I think he can handle it”. Bird was much quicker on both ends of the court and had the necessary toughness, athleticism and size to make the position change as well.
A broken foot kept George out for nearly the entire season, as the Pacers somehow managed to stay in touch with the playoffs until the very end, before falling off with a returning George, who couldn’t do much.
“[We’ll] start camp, see how camp goes”. This isn’t going to be what most teams do with small forwards who slide down – think LeBron James with the Cavs, who amongst the Cavs’ stop lineups, spent just 102.6 minutes as a nominal four last season per 82games.com – it’s going to be a total philosophy shift.
“It’s just being outmatched strength-wise with guys at the four spot is really the only concern”, George told USA Today.
“So it’s gonna be an adjustment”. The goal is to make a traditional power forward too much of a defensive liability against George since he will be able to use his athleticism and guard skills to beat them in space.
PG: “It’s not what I came into the league as. I’m not too thrilled about it, but I’m open to it”, George said.
– Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) September 24, 2015PG: “I’m not going to knock it like it’s just totally a bad decision”. He can see the benefits of it.
Can you feel the enthusiasm?
George is trying to play along here, but man can you tell he’s not happy with this. While it might not be George’s preference and could be a bad move overall for the Pacers, if this team is truly pursuing a small-ball, fast-paced offense, then the reality is that George is the only option at starting power forward.
The problem is he will have to battle those guys on the glass and in the post. The injury forced him to miss all but six games of last season, during which he averaged 8.8 points and 3.7 rebounds while obviously performing at less than 100 percent.
When healthy, Paul George is a top-five talent in the NBA, but kept in mind he is coming off a gruesome leg injury suffered last offseason playing for the US Men’s National Team in Las Vegas. With West and Hibbert – the cornerstones of the Pacers’ ethos the past few years – gone, there may be no time better to make this move.
However, if the plan works as Bird envisions, the offense – which has been a disaster for years – could see huge gains.
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Head coach Frank Vogel will take part in a Twitter Q&A on the Pacers’ Facebook page, while all players on the roster will visit with Pacers radio broadcasters Pat Boylan and Mark Boyle for a special edition of the “Blue & Gold Breakdown”. It’s hard to say the team is of one mind about it, however. However, will Paul George be able to hold up at power forward against the big interiors of the division rivals (Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee)?
