Paul George (shoulders) out through October
The Clippers’ new dynamic duo won’t be completely unveiled until at least November, per Ramona Shelburne. Paul George told the ESPN reporter that, due to offseason shoulder surgeries, he will miss the entire preseason and the beginning of the regular season through October.
“I will be out of the preseason,” George said. “As of now, I’ll be out of October fully, but who knows? We’ll see. In the November range is our target date.”
Paul George says he’s out all of October recovering from shoulder surgeries (plural), which means the Clippers won’t have one of their two new stars for at least the first 6 games of the year. https://t.co/pjLcf7C4in
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) September 30, 2019
The acquisition of George via trade from Oklahoma City, combined with the signing of reigning Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, has the Clippers at the forefront of a suddenly wide-open NBA title chase. The former Thunder and Pacers All-Star is coming off a career year in which he averaged 28.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and a league-leading 2.2 steals.
George’s ongoing health will be of utmost importance to the Clippers, who traded an unprecedented number of draft picks to acquire him. Without him, LA will rely on Leonard and a cast of returning veterans that surpassed expectations last season.
