Paul George says he gets criticised more than most despite his heroics after leading the Los Angeles Clippers to a 116-102 win over the Phoenix Suns on Monday.
George scored 41 points with 13 rebounds and six assists as the Clippers kept alive the Western Conference finals, staving off elimination and trailing 3-2 in the series.
The Clippers forward scored 30 points in the second half including three from beyond-the-arc, shooting at 75 per cent from the field for the game.
George’s dominant display comes in Kawhi Leonard’s absence, while Ivica Zubac was also unavailable for the first time in the past two seasons.
The criticism of George was a hot topic post-game, with the Clippers star baffled by its continuation despite a strong series.
“It’s the honest truth. It’s a fact,” George said when asked about being picked on. “But I can’t worry about that. It comes with the job.
“I still try to go and dominate. I’m beyond that. I am who I am. I wish I could shoot 80 per cent, 75 per cent, on a nightly basis, but it’s not realistic.
“What I can do is do everything else. They can judge me on what they want to. That part don’t matter to me.
“I’m going to go out there and hoop and give it everything I got.”
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue also leapt to the defence of George who scored 20 points in the third quarter when the Suns hit the lead for the first time at 62-61.
“I just don’t understand why it’s magnified so much when he has a bad game, when he doesn’t play well,” Lue said.
“A lot of people play bad. I’m just happy he came back, played a great game, we needed every bit of it.”
