| Paul George |
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 | | Recent Tweets |
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| All Tweets | 140 characters not enough. Phone probably better. Can you email me? RT @CoachLeeMoon: Any thoughts on Paul George?
2010-03-14 14:10:06 | This is Paul George RT @King24George: I'm not declaring and signing an agent I'm jus goin to the workouts and then goin from there sheesh!
2010-03-12 15:36:03 | Paul George, 1st player to declare via Twitter? RT @King24George: Testing the waters my tweets but I'm leanin towards leavin to the draft.
2010-03-12 08:29:01 | Paul George's season & likely college career is over after Fresno St loses to La Tech. Faded in 2nd half.Finished w/22 pts, 11 rebs, 8-21 FG
2010-03-11 20:17:03 | Paul George 12 pts, 9 rebs 5-14 FG in 1st half. Every play is run for him. Doing some nice things, but not very consistent w/decision making
2010-03-11 19:28:03 | | Top 25s - Full List |
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| Team: Fresno State, Sophomore |
| Physicals | Positions | Rankings | Misc |
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H: 6' 7"
W: 185 lbs
Bday: 05/02/1990
(19 Years Old)
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Current: SF/PF
NBA: SF/PF
Possible: SF/PF
| Round: 1 Pick: 22 in 2010 Mock Draft
Rank 15 in NCAA Sophomores
Rank 25 in Top 100 Prospects
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High School: Pete Knight HS
Hometown: Palmdale, CA
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| Basic Per Game Statistics - Comprehensive Stats - Statistical Top 25s |
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| NCAA Weekly Performers, 3/10/10
March 10, 2010
Scott Nadler
Fresno State’s Paul George has steadily been climbing NBA draft boards since he broke out onto the national scene as a freshman last season. We were high on him a year ago and he’s certainly made improvements to his game – living up to the preseason hype that surrounded him in the beginning of the year. His versatility, athleticism and scoring ability are all part of the package of this highly talented small forward, and in a draft class limited with skilled wing players; George could be one of the best options at that position come June.
George has made huge strides from last season to this season, which is extremely encouraging considering the fact that he’s the go-to-guy on a struggling Bulldogs team and the focal point of every opposing defense. Despite all the attention, he’s averaging an impressive 20.3 points per 40 pace adjusted – getting the bulk of his points in transition and in spot up situations.
With a long and wiry frame, George runs the floor well and is good for a highlight reel dunk or strong finish at least once a game – which is one of his biggest improvements from last season. In ’08-’09, George converted a measly 39.3% of his shots around the basket. This year however, he’s finishing at a much higher rate, shooting a fantastic 55.8% at the rim, which dispels some of the questions regarding his lack of toughness.
He’s also increased his free throw attempts a game, albeit not by a considerable amount (3.9 FTA to 4.5 FTA), but it nonetheless shows his attention and focus to better his progress is in the right place. Furthermore, George has made a gigantic leap in his efficiency as a free throw shooter, going from a below 70% shooter from the charity stripe to making 90.6% of his attempts, ranking him 2nd in our entire database.
With that said, it would be nice to see George getting to the line more, and there are several reasons as to why he’s not doing so at a higher rate in his current state of development. Most glaring are his limitations as a shot-creator. He has average stationary ball handling skills and is capable of dribbling the ball on the perimeter at the WAC level, but when it comes to exploding by his man and getting into the teeth of the defense – he presently lacks that skill set. He plays a bit too upright and must learn how to play lower to the ground, which should enhance his ability to utilize his athleticism. Tightening up his ball-handling skills and improving his ability to create in the half-court will be a key part of his development moving forward.
Another reason is his love for the 3 point shot. George attempts 5.8 3-pointers a game, 6th in our database amongst all small forwards. At least one or two a night is of the settling nature – either an attempt early in the shot clock or a quick look in transition with no teammates in position to rebound. As his attempts per game have increased from 4.1 to 5.8, his percentage has dipped from an absurd 44.7% last season to 35.8% this season—a pretty dramatic drop-off.
George is not a very good off the dribble shooter at this point in time, but you would never guess that by the way he plays at times. He’s made just 5/28 attempts (a dismal 18%) of that nature in the 14 game-tapes we have at our disposal—showing how far off he is in this area. His talent level as a shot-maker should allow him to improve here down the road, but he should definitely try to avoid falling in love with his mid-range pull-up.
With that said, his shot is still one of his major selling points. He has an effortless stroke and unlimited range and in today’s NBA, teams are always looking for players who can help spread the floor. He doesn’t elevate particularly well on his shot, but with his excellent size, long wingspan and quick release, he doesn’t have a problem getting it off.
Another strong aspect of his game is in his ability to see the floor and his willingness to share the ball. With good size on the perimeter he can see over the defense and make difficult passes in the half court, averaging slightly over 3 assists a game which makes him one of the better passing small forwards in college basketball.
On the other hand, George averages the same amount of turnovers a game as he does assists. He can be very nonchalant with the basketball at times and tries to make spectacular passes on occasion when only a simple pass is needed. That nonchalant nature is consistent with his personality, which has raised questions about his on court effort. He tends to coast at times, just running up and down the court without great energy and not showing a real disposition to dominate the fairly weak competition he plays against in the WAC, something that obviously won’t cut it in the NBA.
As a defender, George has all the tools to be very solid on this side of the ball, but hasn’t fully put it all together just yet. He comes out of his stance too often and is unaware at times of his opponent’s strengths – backing off of a shooter or caroling a driver, suggesting he needs to pay more attention to scouting reports. Despite that, his length, anticipatory skills and quick hands have made George one of the nation’s leaders in steals, collecting over 2 a game.
Projected right now as a solid 1st round pick, it’s not unfathomable to see George creep his way higher up the board when it’s all said and done if he chooses to declare for the draft. Reminiscent of an [url=/profile/Al-Thornton-591/]Al Thornton or a [url=/profile/Wilson-Chandler-505/]Wilson Chandler, George has the talent, look and potential to be a successful rotational NBA player down the road.
 [Read Full Article]
Top NBA Draft Prospects in the Non-BCS Conferences, Part One
November 1, 2009
Jonathan Givony
No longer flying underneath the radar after a solid, yet inconclusive freshman season playing for a bad team in the weak WAC conference, Fresno State’s Paul George enters this season facing far higher expectations than he did last year.
Standing 6-7, with a very narrow frame, long arms and good, but not incredible athleticism, Paul George possesses prototypical physical attributes for an NBA small forward prospect, even if he currently sees more time at the power forward position. He has nice quickness and solid explosiveness, but still has yet to reach his full athletic potential with how underdeveloped his body appears to be at the moment.
Offensively, George’s main virtues clearly lie in his terrific perimeter shooting accuracy. He shot an outstanding 45% from beyond the 3-point line last year, on a more than adequate sample size of just over 4 attempts per game, making him one of the top NBA prospects in that category going into just his sophomore season. While his shooting mechanics are mostly flat-footed and a bit on the unorthodox side, his release is extremely quick and the results are obviously extremely impressive.
A pretty cool customer who does not appear to force the issue that often, George lets the game come to him and seems to be a pretty good teammate. He has the length and athleticism to make plays around the rim, particularly in transition using nice footwork and some quick spin moves, and is not afraid to attack the basket and try to finish emphatically with a powerful dunk. He gets to the free throw line in turn at a solid rate, even if he did not convert quite as well (70%) as you might hope from the charity stripe considering his prowess from beyond the arc. With only one season of college basketball underneath his belt, he obviously has plenty of time to improve on this part of his game. Despite being an excellent perimeter shooter with his feet set, his percentages drop off considerably when forced to pull-up off the dribble.
Beyond his ability to make spot-up perimeter jumpers and use his physical attributes around the basket, George is rather raw offensively at this point in time. Though he displays a very nice first step, he has a difficult time fully utilizing his athleticism due to his extremely underdeveloped ball-handling skills. George looks very limited trying to create shots for himself from the perimeter, even against the weak competition he faces in the WAC, struggling to change directions with the ball and being fairly turnover prone when forced to put his head down and make things happen.
George has a difficult time finishing plays around the basket at times due to his lack of strength, possibly lacking a degree of toughness here, and cannot really take advantage of his size advantage in the post at the WAC level due to these same reasons. He will likely take a few more years to fully fill out his frame with how underdeveloped he appears to be physically at this point in time.
Defensively, George has the physical tools (size, length, athleticism) to be a terrific option on this end of the floor, and will already make some terrific plays from time to time. He possesses the ability to fill up the stat-sheet with rebounds, steals and blocks, but also impresses with his ability to slide and smother opponents with his excellent length, appearing to have the potential to defend multiple positions at the next level. He still has a ways to go here too, though, looking a bit too upright trying to stay in front of smaller players on the perimeter, not always showing the best fundamentals, and likely lacking some experience defending the small forward position. Getting stronger will probably help, as will the added maturity that comes with another year of college basketball.
It will be interesting to see how George manages to deal with the notoriety of being (prematurely?) hyped by some this summer as a potential top-10 pick. Fresno State had a dreadful season last year (going 3-14 in the WAC), and George will be expected to carry his team offensively and lead them to much better results. Clearly he has the potential and then some to play at the next level with his intriguing physical attributes and budding skill-set, but it remains to be seen whether he’s prepared for the scrutiny of having NBA scouts at every game and practice of his as well as the burden of trying to carry a team on his back and make the NCAA tournament. We will have to wait patiently and see how things develop.
[Read Full Article]
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