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The Pacers desperately need a killer down the stretch in close games. Paul George shows flashes of that guy once in awhile, but in Cleveland on Monday night he tried to kill 'em with kindness instead and the result was quite laughable for the Cavs' TV crew.
Midway through the fourth quarter with the Pacers holding a two-point lead, J.R. Smith tried to climb over a Myles Turner blockout...on a free throw. Smith ended up falling hard on his back as the Pacers took the ball the other way with a 5-on-4 opportunity.
Except, PG stayed behind to make sure J.R. was okay and help him up. Without the man advantage, Monta Ellis drove to the lane to miss a contested layup and soon LeBron James was heading the other way with the ball. Not only was Smith okay but he was primed and ready to knock down a spot-up three-pointer.
The poor video below shows the plays, but the audio from the Cavs' television broadcast is the highlight as announcers Fred McLoud and Austin Carr clown on PG for taking himself out of the play to help Smith who in turn burned the Pacers for three to give the Cavs a lead.
As you can hear, before Smith hit the shot, the two joked about how no one would do what PG did back when Carr played. Then after Smith knocked down the shot, McLoud exclaimed, "He (Smith) says, thanks Paul George for the hospitality!"
Then as they go to the timeout, Carr says through cackling laughter, "I betcha he won't help him up again! (laughing) J.R. says, thanks for the help but this time I'm gonna dot your eye!"
We can only hope PG doesn't help him up, again.
Check out the links:
Game Preview: Pacers at Bucks | Indiana Pacers
Pacers' Chase Budinger finds space to fit in
Pacers' Myles Turner excels with parents' support - 13 WTHR Indianapolis
Bucks' Jabari Parker takes explosive first step toward greatness