NBA Rumors: Is Indiana Pacers’ Paul George untouchable?
A third straight postseason defeat at the hands of the Miami Heat has left the Indiana Pacers entering an offseason full of questions.
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Both Lance Stephenson and Evan Turner will be restricted free agents and although Turner didn’t make much of an impact, the Pacers’ decision on what to do with the talented, but troubled Stephenson will be interesting.
There is also talk the Pacers could trade Roy Hibbert and that Paul George is the only player deemed as untouchable.
Although George appears to be untouchable, Marc Stein wonders if the Pacers would ever entertain the thought of dealing him.
"Yes. Sources close to the situation will tell you Paul George unquestionably qualifies.However …Expectations are only going to rise next season. The 2014-15 season will be Year 1 of the 24-year-old’s new five-year max contract extension that will eat up 27 percent of Indiana’s salary cap after the contract benchmarks George reached.The total value of the contract will be at least $83 million, which puts the onus on George to address his offensive inconsistency. He’s an absolutely elite two-way player when you factor everything in, but the fact remains that there isn’t a single Pacer on the roster who can conclusively carry his team to a big road win in the playoffs with his scoring."
George averaged 21.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.9 steals per while shooting 42.4% from the field, 36.4% from beyond the arc and 86.4% from the charity stripe. In the postseason, he put up 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.2 steals per game while shooting 43.8% from the field, 40.3% from three and 78.9% from the free throw line.