Having lost a winnable home game to the lottery-bound Timberwolves on Tuesday night, the Pacers have slipped to seventh in the Eastern Conference standings, and are just two games ahead of the No. 9 Bulls as they look to secure a playoff spot. The team’s latest performance was a frustrating one for star forward Paul George, who expressed his displeasure in comments after the game, as Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star details.
“There’s no urgency, no sense of urgency, no winning pride,” George said (Twitter link). “This locker room is just not pissed off enough.”
“We should have a professional approach, man, and defend our home court, especially to a team that’s not even in the playoffs,” George added. “That’s what it comes down to. As a team, we’ve got to have a grit and we’ve got to own up, man up.”
George, who also suggested he didn’t get the ball enough late in the loss to the Wolves, is hardly the only player to publicly express frustration with his team’s performance this year. However, given the 26-year-old’s contract situation, any comments to that effect will be given extra scrutiny.
After this season, George has just one year left on his contract with the Pacers, and reports have suggested that the Lakers have piqued his interest as a possible free agent destination. Pacers president Larry Bird has indicated – both publicly and privately – that he’ll do all he can to keep George in Indiana, but if the 2016/17 campaign ends poorly for the team, trade speculation figures to run rampant this summer.
The Pacers have a challenging stretch of games on tap as they look to lock down a postseason berth. They’ll be back in action tonight in Memphis, then will play the Raptors, Cavaliers, and Raptors again. Assuming they’re still hanging onto a playoff spot after that stretch, the Pacers will be in a decent position to finish strong, with games against the Bucks, Magic, Sixers, and Hawks to close the regular season.
Wonder if PG13 will get the same kind of negative press that Wade and Butler got when they said basically the same thing?
Winning is a culture, like diving for loose balls or setting a hard pick, battling for boards boxing out. The heart of a champion never pauses. Laker fan here, we’ll see how this plays out. Stay healthy
They should bring back Hibbert and Lance for next year. I would let Teague leave and try and bring Rose in since PG does not want to be in a Westbrook situation where he has to go nuts and drop 30 just to get W’s.
Rose-Lance-George-Turner-Hibbert
Come play for the Sixers. We have Simmons and Jo Jo.
Hibbert is closer to being out the league then ever starting for another team. He terrible now.
Why do Lakers fans feel the need to share the fact they are Lakers fans after every time they post? I wouldn’t want to let on to people that I’m delusional.
Lakers fan here, I don’t understand what you mean? I’ve never seen anyone do that.
George would be a nice fit on the Heat. If the Pacers let him go, they would be in rebuild mode and the Heat have several young players with big upsides the Pacers could use.