The Los Angeles Clippers' season-long seven-game road trip takes them to Detroit, where they'll take on the Pistons on Friday night. They were forced to play against the Wizards without star forward Paul George.

George, who was dealing with a sore left groin over the last week, was not listed on the Clippers' injury report ahead of Friday's game against the Detroit Pistons.

George will likely need to go through the team's morning shootaround before a final determination is made on his availability. On Wednesday, Paul George was added to the injury report and downgraded to questionable following the team's shootaround, where head coach Tyronn Lue told Brandon Boston Jr. he'd be in the rotation. Amir Coffey started in George's place, so he will revert back to his bench role with the expected return of George.

The LA Clippers are in the midst of their usual Grammy trip away from Crypto dot com Arena. This year, it's a season-long, seven game road trip that started on January 25th and will end on February 5th. At one point or another, Paul George's status has been in question for every game since the start of the trip until this one against the Pistons.

Paul George initially suffered what the team called a sore left groin in the Clippers' blowout win over the Sacramento Kings on December 12, 2023. George would miss one game against the Warriors before returning to face the New York Knicks. He hadn't been listed on the injury report with the same groin issue until this road trip.

The injury popped back up in last Sunday's comeback home win against the Brooklyn Nets. He subsequently played against the Los Angeles Lakers two nights later without any mention of the injury, but clearly played like he was affected by it. In his postgame press conference after the win, George said he suffered an aggravation of the injury against the Lakers, and wasn't sure if it was going to hold him out of any games.

“Yeah, it was something that re-aggravated from last game and just trying to be ahead of it,” George told reporters after last Tuesday's win. “So it's a little sore, but I was fine enough to lace it up and give it a go tonight.”

Paul George played in in the first three games of the Clippers' seven-game road trip, taking on Toronto, Boston, and Cleveland, but missing the game against Washington. Even in the games he's played, however, George has not looked like himself offensively. George is shooting just 37.8 percent from the field (14-of-37) and just 30 percent from three (6-of-20) over the last three games.

Tyronn Lue has pointed out throughout this road trip that Paul George is still dealing with the affects of the groin injury and that the Clippers appreciate his playing through the discomfort. Even as a limited player, George on the court offers the Clippers a major spot-up and off-the-dribble threat.

“He's doing okay,” Tyronn Lue said after the Clippers' last win over the Cavs. “Just pushing through, playing the way he has. We appreciate that. We need everybody we can get because he's still dangerous on the floor and so just monitoring to see how he feels. Just making sure that he stays on his restriction. But he's fighting through something and playing and so we need him on the floor if he can be out there. And if not, then we understand. We appreciate him being on the floor fighting through what he's going through.”

Paul George has missed just three total games to date, showing elite durability while playing through some little nicks and bruises. Aside from the Warriors game, George also missed a game against the Dallas Mavericks due to an illness that spread throughout the Clippers locker room in late December. The medical staff has also been taking the time with him both pre and postgame to ensure that he's getting the treatment necessary to continue to play.

As an aside, George, who could be named to this ninth NBA All-Star Game tonight, is also actively negotiating a contract extension with the Clippers. Teammate Kawhi Leonard recently agreed to a three-year, $153 million extension with the team, and the expectation is that Paul George and the Clippers will reach an agreement on a new extension sooner rather than later.

“I'm extremely excited and happy for Kawhi reaching a deal to hopefully make him a Clipper for the rest of his career,” George said a few weeks ago after Leonard's extension was announced. “We'll see my situation when we get there, but again, just happy they got the deal done on his end. I know he wants to stay here and myself as well. When my time comes, we'll be ready for those conversations as well.”

When asked about his level of optimism that a deal could get done, George said he was optimistic.

“Yeah, I mean, absolutely,” George added. “You secure and lock in Kawhi. Definitely leaves the door open for myself, but very, very optimistic something will get done on my behalf, as well.

“We’re, we’re working through it. We’re working through it.”

In 43 appearances for the Clippers this season, George has averaged 23 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.6 steals per game on 46.3 percent shooting from the field, 41.2 percent from three, and 91 percent from the free throw line. The field goal, three-point, and free throw percentages are career highs for Paul George.