Paul George is one of the most versatile stars of his generation.
While he obviously has always been a talented offensive player, where George has really set himself apart often throughout his career is the defensive side of the ball.
That makes him uniquely qualified to speak on who the league’s tougher players to defend are and have been.
This week, George revealed the hardest NBA star he ever had to defend.
In his estimation, it was definitely Carmelo Anthony.
“Melo was so good, he can get his shot off in a phone booth,” George said.
“He didn’t need much space and so with him, I had to play him extra tight… He was so good at creating contact and being physical that I was just going to be in for a long game.”
Specifically, George found Anthony’s first step to be absolutely uncatchable.
“Oh it was crazy, he could get his shot off like this and I added that to my game, that quick jab and he’ll put that bounce and then step back and you could not guard it,” George continued.
“It was unguardable, so that’s why you could never give him space because you’re gonna play on your heels when you guard Melo. The fastest first step I’ve ever seen, for a guy that size, he had the quickest first step, so you had to play tight defense on Melo.”
There is a reason NBA teams are still interested in Anthony. He is one of the most prolific offensive players in league history. Even at this advanced age he could still be a menace.
Now that’s how you celebrate Easter. https://t.co/xr2pbNwthe
— Game 7 (@game7__) April 10, 2023
As made clear with his blunt message to Ja Morant, George is never one to bite his tongue. If he says something, he means it.
So if he is giving Anthony this sort of credit, it’s deserved.
What interesting tidbits will George ultimately drop on future podcasts? Time will tell.
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A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
