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Paul George’s Next Goal: MVP

By Ben Gibson

Apr 10, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Paul George (13) brings the ball up court during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Pacers won 107-103. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 10, 2015; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Paul George (13) brings the ball up court during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Pacers won 107-103. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /
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After his catastrophic injury less than a year ago the idea of Paul George playing basketball again was a lofty enough goal but now he has set his sights higher.

Much higher.

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According to the Indy Star, Paul George sees being the league’s most valuable player as the next part of his evolution as a player.

"“After being draft into the NBA, I was playing from the bench and then tried to be a starter, then an All-Star. My goal now is set to be MVP. This year, that hasn’t changed,” George told fans at a Beijing Nike store."

Or in Chinese that would be “作为选秀进入NBA后，我从替补打起，然后试图成为首发，那么全明星。我现在的目标设定为MVP 。今年，这并没有改变.”

Paul George finished ninth in the MVP voting two seasons ago. The Pacers started off the season with a nine game win streak and were 40-11 at one point, but then The Struggle happened. Paul George and the entire team’s numbers slipped and PG went from a serious candidate to an after thought.

The idea of Paul George winning the MVP isn’t impossible, but it will be hard this season as he’s still getting back to 100% mentally and physically. But if he’s fixed some of those issues by the beginning of the season and all the changes Larry Bird has made to the Indiana Pacers rosters pay off, then he has the perfect narrative.

Star player misses a whole season (practically) with an injury, recovers, has to find success again with a new line-up, leads team to playoffs. For those that believe the narrative is an important part of a successful MVP campaign, you couldn’t write it better.

However the question remains of what type of player Paul George can be after his injury. All the signs point to him having a full recovery but we won’t know if he is fully back until he shows us what he can do on the court. It is a sobering thought to think PG pay not have “it” anymore, and we can’t say we know for sure until we see “it” on the floor. Time will tell, one way or another.

But Paul George having confidence in himself is one step along that journey of both being the player we saw two seasons ago and becoming the league’s MVP.

Next: Paul George Surprises Pacers Fans in China

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