On the podcast he recently taped with Jalen Green, veteran Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George made it clear that he’s not a fan of a rumored reunion in 2023 free agency between the Rockets and James Harden. One reason George cited is the potential of Harden’s ball-dominant playing style hindering Green’s growth.
Beyond Xs and Os and other tactical considerations, George appears to genuinely like Houston’s collection of talent — headlined by Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., and Alperen Sengun. As such, he wants the development of that young core to be prioritized.
In an extended conversation on “Podcast P with Paul George,” presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment, here’s what George said Houston’s young core and his assessment from a distance:
Green: We’ve shown glimpses. We beat some of the best teams [Boston, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Phoenix] in the NBA. We just couldn’t keep it like that. We’d beat Milwaukee, but the next game, it would be something totally different.
George: I think that’s just part of you all being a young team. It just comes down to the consistency. It’s coming. You’re young, but your time is gonna come, if y’all can stay together. Y’all got a crazy nucleus. Y’all have a legit starting five.
To close out the 2022-23 season, in which the Rockets (22-60) improved by two games from a year earlier, Houston’s starting lineup consisted of five young, athletic players (Green, Sengun, Smith, Porter, and KJ Martin) who were all 22 years old or younger.
The complete segment can be viewed below. In comments from earlier this offseason, George went out of his way to compliment Sengun’s playmaking as a big man and compared it to legends such as Magic Johnson, Pau Gasol, and back-to-back NBA MVP Nikola Jokic.
