Los Angeles Lakers guard Danny Green understood what Paul George meant when he recently said that he was in a “dark place.”
While speaking with the press, Green addressed the Los Angeles Clippers star’s statement regarding his recent struggles on and off the court.
. @DGreen_14 on Paul George- “The bubble is as good as your play. If you’re not playing well, walls are gonna close in on you. Trust me, I know exactly what PG is going through. You have nothing but to look at your phone & social media all day & all they're doing is bullying you” pic.twitter.com/j3XM5m3WEG
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) August 28, 2020
“Trust me, I know exactly what Paul is going through,” Green said. “You have nothing but to look at your phone on social media all day and all they’re doing is bullying you.
“They’re trying to get you to play well so he was going through a rough stretch. I’m sure the walls were closing in on him and it’s getting dark for him.”
George had been going through a shooting slump during the Clippers’ first-round matchup against the Dallas Mavericks.
After Game 5 of the series on Tuesday, George offered an explanation for his struggles.
“The bubble got the best of me,” George said. “I was just in a dark place. I really wasn’t here, I checked out. These past couple of games, it was just difficult. But shoutout to the people that stood behind me, that was in my corner.
“The positivity, my teammates, my family, my friends, everybody. Thank everybody that reached out to me. I was just in a bad place. I found my way. I’m back, and I look forward to the rest of this run.”
In Games 2, 3 and 4 of the series, George made only 10 of his 47 shots from the field. The 21.3 percent shooting clip coincided with the Clippers losing two of the three games to the Mavs.
George’s superstar teammate Kawhi Leonard expressed confidence after Game 4 that George would get over the hump eventually.
In Game 5, George finally broke through the slump with a 35-point explosion. He led the Clippers to a 154-111 demolition job of the Mavericks. George shot a sizzling 12-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-8 from 3-point territory.
The win snapped a 2-2 series tie, putting the Clippers one victory away from advancing to the next round of the playoffs.
