The Indiana Pacers have not been able to get out to the hot start many predicted. They currently hold a 15-17 record as the first team out of the Eastern conference playoff picture.
Perhaps that explains all the frustration that Paul George has inside him. The Pacers’ superstar recently ranted about a perceived lack of calls in favor of his team.
Following via ESPN’s Nick Friedell:
“I’ve been fined multiple times,” George told reporters. “I’ve been vocal to the point where the league issues [a statement], ‘Hey, we missed a call. Hey, we missed that.’ Officials do it during games [saying], ‘I missed that call, I missed this call. We’re sorry. We’re sorry.’ It’s getting repetitive. They see it, they know what’s going on. They know what’s a foul. They know what’s not a foul. It comes down from somewhere else how these games are going, I believe.”
George was asked if he felt that things would be different if he played for a big-market team.
“Since I’ve been in this jersey we’ve always fought this battle,” George said. “Ever since I’ve been playing, ever since I’ve been in this jersey we’ve fought this battle. Maybe the league has teams they like so they can give them the benefit of the doubt. We’re the little brother of the league. We’re definitely the little brother of the league.”
Call me crazy, but I don’t think there is a league-wide conspiracy to give the Pacers a disadvantage in foul calls. If anything, Indiana being good is good for the league because it puts one of the best superstars in the spotlight.
The Pacers don’t have a ton of players who consistently drive to the rim and draw fouls. That’s more of an issue than the officials choosing not to call fouls. Paul George probably knows that but frustration gets the best of us.
