Professional career Paul George

1 professional career

1.1 indiana pacers (2010–2017)

1.1.1 pre-draft , rookie season
1.1.2 2011–12 season
1.1.3 2012–13 season
1.1.4 2013–14 season
1.1.5 2014–15 season
1.1.6 2015–16 season
1.1.7 2016–17 season


1.2 oklahoma city thunder (2017–present)

professional career
indiana pacers (2010–2017)
pre-draft , rookie season

on march 31, 2010, george announced forgo final 2 seasons of college eligibility @ fresno state , enter 2010 nba draft. made first appearance on 2010 mock draft on draft express month sophomore season. may 2010, mock drafts such draft express, espn.com, , hoops report predicted george selected 12th overall memphis grizzlies. 2 days before draft, marc j. spears yahoo! sports wrote article anonymous eastern conference scout stating in 5 years, paul george best player come out of draft . hoping draft derrick favors, pacers had discussed draft trade nets have sent danny granger , 10th pick nets devin harris, yi jianlian , 3rd overall pick, deal fell through. george invited sit in green room during draft , selected tenth overall indiana pacers. became highest nba draft pick in fresno state history. on july 1, 2010, signed rookie contract pacers; two-year guaranteed deal worth $3.9 million, team options third , fourth year.

on october 27, george made nba debut against san antonio spurs, playing 23 minutes , scoring 4 points on 1–5 shooting. in game against washington wizards, knocked down 5 three-pointers , finished then-career-high 23 points. george averaged 7.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists on 45% shooting in first season, starting 19 of 61 games. showed defensive skills, leading team in steals-per-minute. 2011 playoffs, george 1 of 2 rookies 2010 nba draft in starting lineup team, other being landry fields new york knicks. in playoffs, pacers lost in 5 games chicago bulls, led derrick rose. upon completion of inaugural season, george named 2011 nba all-rookie second team.

2011–12 season

on february 3, 2012, george recorded 30 points, 7 three-pointers made, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, , 1 blocked shot in win against dallas mavericks. george selected compete in slam dunk contest , rising stars challenge during 2012 nba all-star weekend. in slam dunk contest, george completed 360 windmill dunk in dark , dunked on teammates dahntay jones , roy hibbert. however, lost contest jeremy evans. finished 2011–12 lockout-shortened season averages of 12.1 points, 5.6 rebounds , 2.4 assists on 44% shooting, george started 66 games pacers in season. after beating orlando magic, without dwight howard, in 5 games in first round, pacers lost eventual nba champion miami heat 4–2 in eastern conference semifinals, george making 19 of 52 field goals.

2012–13 season

during first 2 seasons in nba, george played shooting guard position. however, danny granger missing entire season due knee , calf injuries, george began playing small forward position , became go-to offensive option pacers in third season. on november 21, 2012, george made 9 three-pointers en route career-high 37 points in victory against new orleans hornets. 9 3-pointers broke franchise record 3-pointers made in single game, surpassing hall of famer reggie miller. george named nba s player of week first time in career in december, winning 3 straight games against cleveland, philadelphia, , detroit. recorded first career triple-double in victory on charlotte bobcats on february 13, 2013, finishing 23 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists , 2 steals. same season, george selected play in 2013 nba all-star game in houston first all-star selection of career. recorded 17 points, 3 rebounds , 4 assists on 7-of-13 shooting in 20 minutes east, lost west 143–138. george averaged career highs of 17.4 points, 7.6 rebounds , 4.1 assists, , player in league @ least 140 steals , 50 blocks. @ conclusion of regular season, named nba improved player.

in game 1 of pacers 2013 nba playoffs first-round series versus atlanta hawks, george recorded first career playoff triple-double, tallying 23 points, 11 rebounds , 12 assists in 107–90 win. first postseason triple-double pacers player since mark jackson had 1 in 1998 playoffs. on may 13, 2013, george named nba all-defensive second team. george led pacers 18 points, 14 rebounds , 7 assists in game 4 of eastern conference semifinals against knicks on may 14, 2013 in 93-82 victory. in game 1 of 2013 eastern conference finals against miami heat, george made three-point field goal @ end of fourth quarter tie game , force overtime period. during overtime, dwyane wade fouled george 2.2 seconds remaining. despite george making 3 free-throws , putting team 102-101, pacers lost lebron james drove in buzzer beater lay-up. cap off great 2012–13 campaign, george named all-nba third team.

2013–14 season

on september 25, 2013, indiana pacers extended george s contract, electing him designated player. extension, start @ end of rookie contract in 2014, 5/30 designated player extension (5 years , 30% of salary cap), subject passing derrick rose test. george had elected 1 further all-nba team (at level) or mvp during 2013–14 season qualify 30% extension. if met either of these criteria, 30% extension estimated worth around $90 million on 5-year deal. if had failed meet criteria, contracted @ 25% of salary cap.

the pacers started 2013–14 season 9–0 first time in franchise history. george finished 31 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, , 4 steals in 99–91 victory on detroit pistons. posted 23 points, 8 rebounds , 6 assists during 91-84 win on toronto raptors on november 8. following day scored 24 points , added 6 rebounds in 96-91 victory on brooklyn nets. efforts, named eastern conference player of week. 9 wins start season, indiana became first nba team start season 9-0 since dallas mavericks in 2002–03 season. pacers undefeated streak ended @ 9–0 against bulls on november 16. on december 2, 2013, scored career high 43 points, along 3 rebounds , 3 assists, in 102-106 loss portland trail blazers. following day, george named eastern conference player of month, first time in career, month of november while leading pacers 15-1 record. pacers finished regular season incredible 56-26 record. in 2014 playoffs, pacers eliminated atlanta hawks , washington wizards in first 2 rounds. in game 4 against wizards, george scored playoff career-high 39 points. pacers eliminated in eastern conference finals against miami heat third straight year. efforts, george named all-nba third team, qualifying him full 30% extension, , all-defensive first team.

2014–15 season

players on usa basketball men’s national team react after teammate paul george suffered serious leg injury during fourth quarter of intra-squad scrimmage @ thomas , mack center in las vegas on august 1, 2014.

during 2014 offseason, george named training camp roster national team represent country @ 2014 fiba basketball world cup in spain. had been considered virtual lock make roster. however, on august 1, george landed awkwardly @ base of basket stanchion after fouling james harden during las vegas scrimmage, , suffered compound fracture of both bones in lower right leg. after george carted off court, head coach mike krzyzewski addressed arena stating game not continue out of respect george , family. george went surgery fracture, pin being inserted in leg. while no official prognosis given, considered miss entire 2014–15 season. george, had said wanted play @ time during season, cleared put weight on leg in late september, , shooting jumpers in practice in late october. participated in first full practice of season on february 26, 3 days earlier expected, , ruled possibility play within week on march 20. on april 5, george made return pacers line-up first time since sustaining leg injury team usa. scored 13 points in 15 minutes , made 2 key three-pointers in fourth quarter, helping pacers defeat miami heat 112–89. played out final 6 games of season indiana, averaging 8.8 points , 3.7 rebounds per game.

2015–16 season

in pacers 2015–16 season opener against toronto raptors on october 28, george recorded 17 points on 4-of-17 shooting , 12 rebounds in 106–99 loss. after publicly criticizing referees following game, fined $10,000. on november 6, scored 36 points in 90–87 win on miami heat. 3 days later, scored 27 points, including career-high 19 points in first quarter, lead pacers 97–84 win on orlando magic. on november 24, george scored 40 points , made 7 three-pointers, part of franchise-record 19 pacers in 123–106 victory on washington wizards. on december 3, named eastern conference player of month games played in october , november. george led eastern conference , ranked fourth in nba in scoring (27.2 ppg), helping pacers win 11 of 13 games after 0–3 start. 2 days later, scored career-high 48 points in 122–119 overtime loss utah jazz. george competed eastern conference in 2016 nba all-star game in toronto, started , game s leading scorer 41 points, finishing 1 point shy of all-star game record set wilt chamberlain (42) in 1962. on march 19, had 45-point game in 115–111 loss oklahoma city thunder. george helped pacers return playoffs in 2016, finishing seventh seed in eastern conference 45–37 record.

on april 16, 2016, george played in first playoff game since 2014, scored 33 points in game 1 victory on second-seeded toronto raptors. in game 5 of series, george scored 39 points in losing effort, pacers fell behind 3–2. pacers went on lose series in 7 games.

following 2015–16 season, george joined united states national team 2016 rio olympics.

2016–17 season

george defending lebron james in 2017

in pacers season opener on october 26, 2016, george scored 25 points in 130–121 overtime win on dallas mavericks. on november 1, scored 30 points, including indiana s final 12 of game, rally pacers 115–108 win on los angeles lakers. on december 10, scored season-high 37 points, including 13 straight in fourth quarter, lead pacers 118–111 win on portland trail blazers. on january 29, 2017, scored 33 points in 120–101 win on houston rockets, matching career high topping 30-point mark fourth straight game. on march 15, 2017, made 6 three-pointers , scored 27 of season-high 39 points in second half of pacers 98–77 win on charlotte hornets. on april 2, 2017, had 43-point effort in 135–130 double overtime loss cleveland cavaliers. on april 14, 2017, named eastern conference player of month games played in april. george averaged nba-high 32.8 points , added 8.2 rebounds , 4.5 assists pacers went 5–1 in april clinch playoff spot sixth time in 7 seasons.

in game 3 of pacers first-round playoff match-up cleveland on april 20, george scored 36 points, grabbed playoff career-high 15 rebounds , finished 9 assists, 1 short of second postseason triple-double. after leading 74–49 @ halftime, pacers went on lose game 119–114 go down 3–0 in series.

oklahoma city thunder (2017–present)

on july 6, 2017, george traded oklahoma city thunder in exchange victor oladipo , domantas sabonis. in debut thunder in season opener on october 19, 2017, george scored team-high 28 points in 105–84 win on new york knicks. on november 10, 2017, scored season-high 42 points in 120–111 win on los angeles clippers. made 13 of 22 shots , had 9 rebounds , 7 assists.