Should Paul George Be Playing the 4?

The only story in Indiana Pacers nation right now is Paul George’s skepticism about doing what his bosses want him to do.

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The fact that he has this skepticism is natural and obvious. Every player in the league, more or less, would feel the same. The issue that some see is his decision to discuss this issue in public, both prior to training camp and more recently after he was first asked to start at power forward in the team’s first preseason game last weekend against the the New Orleans Pelicans.

In an ideal world, the difference between Paul George having this skepticism and talking about it would be negligible. But this isn’t an ideal world. It is a place where athlete statements are under a microscope. And since the Pacers hopes this season have been rhetorically tied to thriving under a new system and new philosophical approach to the game, the comments are attracting national media attention to a team that hasn’t gotten much since this same All-Star broke his leg, thus moving a back-to-back Eastern Conference Finalist team to the pile of dull, also-ran NBA franchises.

Rob Mahoney of Sports Illustrated had an interesting assessment of the current Paul-George-at-the-4-spot quandary.

"Concern is natural. It’s now on the Pacers to assuage whatever doubts George may have while proving that this arrangement can work. Vogel, in speaking with George to clarify the extent of this change after the Pacers’ first preseason game, has handled George’s public comments deftly.“He knows the big picture, we’re all on the same page,” Vogel said, per Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. “I don’t have any problem with him speaking his mind—as long as he’s communicating with me too, which he is.”A Pacers organization fronted by two bold, outspoken men hasn’t sought to muzzle George. They’ve moved instead to secure his buy-in, that precious commodity that makes any successful gameplanning work. Adequate coaches can identify workable solutions to various problems. Good ones are able to sell those solutions to their players and translate concept to practice. Getting a player—particularly a star like George—to buy in requires a degree of salesmanship, which is as much a coach’s purview as drawing up plays or making in-game adjustments … The point of this change is to put the Pacers on the whole in positions where they can take advantage of their quickness and playmaking in open space. That should help George as much as anyone, as Bird has alluded to on multiple occasions; even a little success in streaking past slower power forwards should nudge George toward the Pacers’ hard sell. Fundamentally, George wants to help Indiana win. All he needs is to be convinced, through theory and practice, that starting and playing at power forward are his best means to do so."

Mike Prada of SB Nation offers an intriguing Xs-and-Os based argument against moving the team’s star wing to the 4 titled “Paul George Is Right.”

"The Pacers’ defensive scheme asks their power forwards to show hard on pick-and-rolls to try to divert the ball handler away from the basket whenever they’re directly involved in the play. (When a center is involved, they hang back in the lane.) The other four players then rotate accordingly, but that initial show is key. The 4-man has to sacrifice his body and position to limit the sacrifice the other four players make, which allows them to focus on their strengths.In the past, the 4-man was David West. West himself is a slow defender, but he dutifully executed the scheme and forced ball handlers to turn away from the hoop. That allowed big Roy Hibbert to park his ass in the lane and do what he does best: Protect the basket. It also allowed George to do what he does best: Swoop in from the wing and use his length to force turnovers or rushed passes that stalled offenses. George and Hibbert got deserved credit for Indiana’s elite defenses, but West (and Luis Scola last year) made their jobs easier.Now, George is the man in West’s position, and that’s a completely different role for him. George is used to being the star free safety that reads the quarterback’s eyes and racks up interceptions. Now, he needs to be the nose tackle that occupies blockers while his teammates finish the plays."

Prada’s defensive-based points are keen.

They work as a more tactical-based consideration to a perspective I raised on FanSided prior to the Pelicans game that focused on how this expected transition, and how he fares in it, will be something of a career crossroads for Paul George.

"While he is a top-level scorer who can get his from behind the arc, at the rim, and in the mid-range, his individual defense is what makes him special. Before his injury, he was arguably the best perimeter defender in the NBA. Perhaps any or all of Kawhi, Tony Allen, or Andre Iguodala were better. And Lebron, when he tried, was still likely the most imposing. But if PG wasn’t better than all those guys, he was right there.So if you take that job away from him — that responsibility to be a savvy, positional savant with elite discipline and uncanny understanding of how to corral players into spots he wanted them to go — what exactly is Paul George? An excellent-but-not-truly-great-or-hyper-efficient scorer who is skinny and gets overpowered and ground down while trying to check larger players?This is a guy who first made his mark in the league by being a 6’9″ rookie forward who slowed down a then-space-age Derrick Rose in a playoff series. In subsequent years he was switching off between covering LeBron and Dwayne Wade in a high-leverage postseason series — not to mention guys like Durant and Carmelo in the regular season — as well as any human can.When he was doing that and scoring 20-25 points per game, he was one of the most fascinating talents in the league and someone who could be the fulcrum of a franchise on both sides of the ball. Now, trying to get back to where he was physically and mentally, he will also be transitioning to a new role that negates what he’s best at."

To me, this is why Paul George is right to be resistant to change.

He signed a long-term extension to play in a place he thought he could thrive while unleashing his elite two-way talent on a litany of inferior Eastern Conference wings for the next five years. Then he broke his leg and lost a year of what is inherently a short career. Then he watched his two front-court mates leave the team. Then he realized he would need to raise this franchise from the ashes almost single-handedly.

Then he was told he would have to do it while reinventing himself into a new role.

I’d be upset, too.

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