Paul George, always deemed to be one of the friendliest guys in the NBA, has emerged as a real leader for the Los Angeles Clippers during his three-years in LA. Now his leadership is spilling over away from professional action.

George, now 32 years of age, had his expectations for the Toronto Raptors skyrocket after getting a firsthand look at their performances during the famous Rico Hines private runs at UCLA held during the offseason.

“I'd be disappointed, coaches, if y'all m-f–ers ain't come out hot to start the season,” George declared, clearly impressed by the strides the Raptors made over the offseason.

The Raptors hired the namesake for the offseason private runs, Rico Hines, as an assistant coach earlier in August. Raptors fans should be excited by the addition of Hines to their development staff. Hines' connection with All-Star and 2019 Most Improved Player Pascal Siakam, in particular, should be cause for excitement, as Siakam, before his award and championship-winning season, trained with Hines during the 2018 offseason.

George lauded the Raptors' work ethic, as everyone on the roster, from All-Stars Siakam and Fred VanVleet to end-of-bench guys Malachi Flynn and Christian Koloko were hard at work for three weeks of the famous private runs.

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“Shoutout Toronto, y'all came, y'all represented,” George added. “It's crazy, I saw y'all on YouTube the first week, came and played the second week. In Week 3, I'm still here, y'all still here.”

Second-year forward Scottie Barnes' development is of particular interest, as Barnes, the Raptors' do-it-all wing, has potential to grow into an All-NBA-caliber player. Barnes has looked impressive thus far, even going toe-to-toe with former MVP James Harden. George knows a thing or two about being a successful wing in the league, and surely George's mentorship and kind words would not go unnoticed for a player with Barnes' willingness to learn and improve.