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Scott Brooks, the Washington Wizards head coach, had high praise for Oklahoma City Thunder star Paul George. Brooks was the last coach in OKC before Billy Donovan was hired in 2015, before Kevin Durant's last season with the team. According to ESPN's Royce Young, Brooks went as far as calling George the best two-way player in the NBA:
“He is one of the best in the league. Guarding anyone on the floor is what makes him, well, not an All-Star, but we all know he is. He's the best two-way player in basketball.”
George was a notable absence from the list of players selected as reserves from the Western Conference to play in the All-Star game. Brooks was speaking about coaches “snubbing” George when he referenced him as the best two-way player.
George has certainly turned into a defensive nightmare on the wing. He leads the league in steals per game (2.2), total steals (97), and deflections per game (4.4) while being third in loose balls recovered per game (1.7) and seventh in defensive win shares (2.5). He was never known as a top defender but deserves to have his name included in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation.
There is not any additional information or context about Brooks' statement, but one can only assume he is speaking only about what we have seen this season. George is definitely a great defender, but there are other great two-way players like Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler that also deserve to be mentioned in the top two-way players list. Even Kawhi Leonard, who has barely played this year, deserves to have his name there. Anyways, it is not hard to see where Brooks comes from with his argument. George definitely deserves a lot of credit for all the work he puts in his defense.
