Paul George Goes Off For A Career-High 48 Points

Paul George scored 48 points in the Indiana Pacers loss to the Utah Jazz.

The MVP race isn’t a foregone conclusion anymore thanks to Paul George’s continued excellence this season. Though the Utah Jazz were victorious, PG added another impressive game to his resume with a career-high 48 points on 15 of 27 shooting (55.6%) and 8 of 11 from deep (72.7%) while gathering 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals.

The 48 points were the 3rd most scored by any player this season, a position shared with Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook.

The Pacers had trailed by as much as 17 point points in the second half, but PG helped fuel a comeback thanks to a going 9 of 15 from the field and 6 of 8 from deep during that stretch. According to John Hollinger‘s game score statistic, it was also the most productive game of PG’s career as well. So far this season the only game you might argue he played better in was the Pacers rout of the Washington Wizards as he scored 40 points on 73.7% shooting.

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While it would be foolish to only attribute the Pacers success to Paul George’s high level of play, it would be just as foolish to ignore how amazing all of this is in a vacuum, much less in the context of him breaking his leg 16 months ago.

Paul George is playing at a level higher than we’ve seen at any point in his career, and 20 some games seems like a good sample size. You hope it won’t be a case like “The Struggle” where he and the team grind to a crawl, but so far his play this season has been as entertaining as it has been productive.

Paul George 2015 Stat Breakdown | PointAfter

The Pacers may have lost, but PG did everything he could to help this team win but his personal best brought him little comfort.

The road ahead isn’t much either easier as the Pacers return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse to host the still perfect Golden State Warriors.

Next: The Pacers Are Looking To Trade Solomon Hill

For both Stephen Curry and Paul George, it will be a chance to go head-to-head against a fellow MVP candidate in a game where both sides have plenty to play for.