Paul George arrives in Boston with the same old questions hanging over him, but the way he’s talking - and the way he looked in last year’s playoffs - suggests there’s still plenty left to prove.
For a while now, George has been framed by two things: the size of his contract and the long-running concern that he can’t stay on the floor. Those criticisms haven’t come out of nowhere. But they’ve also tended to drown out the more important truth: when George is healthy, he’s still a very good player, and maybe even a little underrated at this stage.
That’s the version Boston is getting. At media day, George addressed both his body and his changing role since his All-NBA days, and he sounded confident that he has gotten to the bottom of the issues that have bothered him. More than anything, he made it clear that he expects to be available this season.
“It’s not about going out and trying to drop 30 every night. I think it's more so about being available, being efficient, being consistent, and I think, again, for myself, just proving that when healthy, I'm able to do what I've done in my career.”
That’s the blueprint now. George doesn’t need to be the headline act every night, but he does need to be on the court - because when he is, he still changes games. Celtics fans got a front-row seat to that last postseason, when George was healthy and played one of the best series of his life, scoring efficiently, shooting efficiently, and defending Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown with real force.
The “washed” talk just doesn’t fit anymore. He’s not the same superstar he once was, but that doesn’t mean he’s faded into irrelevance. In fact, with the season about to start, there’s a growing sense that he could be a perfect fit in Boston.
That idea got a boost in a recent Heavy piece from Sean Deveney, who quoted an anonymous executive making the case that George’s deal has actually become a bargain in the bigger picture.
“He is not the player he was 10 years ago, but he still has that rare skillset and if a player has that, he’s got value. If he has that and he is on a short contract, that’s even more value.”
And that rare skillset still pops. George brings size and athleticism, a veteran’s feel, elite shooting, the ability to run offense, create his own shot, and beat defenders one-on-one.
He can make plays for teammates, and he’s still a strong wing defender. That’s a long list of useful traits, especially for a team like Boston.
Yes, the contract is big. But the Celtics also have a roster full of young players on inexpensive deals who contribute, and they’re deep enough to go 12-deep while staying under the luxury tax threshold. With only two years left on George’s deal, and the contract set to expire next year, the financial hit looks a lot less dramatic than it once did.
When Brad Stevens and the Celtics traded Brown for PG and draft picks, plenty of people laughed. Now George and Boston are heading into the season with something to prove, and both sides seem determined to make sure the doubters are the ones left eating it.
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