Sometimes you have to go through the fire to be able to handle adversity in the future. Paul George and the Indiana Pacers experienced life as the hunted after jumping out to an early lead in the Eastern Conference at the beginning of last season.
The pressure and expectations took a toll on the Pacers as they struggled to finish the regular season and barely made the conference finals.
George believes he and the Pacers learned a lot from expectations and are now ready to live up to the pressures of being an elite franchise.
The star shooting guard stated that he’s ready to rise up to the pressure of being a star.
“People do look at it that way,” George insisted, perhaps even trying to sell it. “I’ve got a lot of pressure and I’m coming into this year and I’m ready to live up to that pressure.”
In what could be deemed a little reverse psychology, George believes the Pacers will thrive with reduced expectations after losing Lance Stephenson via free agency.
“With Lance being gone and everyone thinking this is going to be a rebuilding year for us,” Paul George said during Team USA training camp this week, “immediately when LeBron went to Cleveland, that made them the front-runners.”