Paul George Puts Himself Ahead of Scottie Pippen as the Best Two-way Small Forward of All-time: “I’m Up There With the Best to Play Both Ends”

There can be no doubt in any basketball fan’s mind that Paul George is an elite two-way player who, in his heyday, could be unstoppable offensively with his versatility and is the toughest guy on the floor to get a bucket against.

With a career scoring average of over 20 points per game, the Clippers forward is also a 4x All-Defensive Team member. But is he one of the greatest two-way players of all time? He thinks so.

Also read: “Russell Westbrook is One of the Best Point Guards Ever”: Paul George Praises Brodie For Passing Isiah Thomas On All-time Assist List

Paul George keeps himself at the Top-5 of the best two-way players of all time

In a recent episode of Podcast P, the 8x All-Star could not resist and brought up the subject of the best two-way players in the NBA and chose himself alongside Gary Payton, Michael Jordan, Kevin Garnett, and Hakeem Olajuwon.

“Healthy and locked in I think I’m up there with the best to play both ends,” said George.

One thing, you cannot help but notice there is everyone on that list except for PG13 has at least 9 All-Defensive Team selections compared to his four. Not to forget they also won Defensive Player of the Year awards at least once in their career.

Also read: “Michael Jordan Would’ve Taken No Years Off If he Knew of LeBron James”: Paul George Gives his Two Cents on the GOAT Debate

Does a two-way list w/o Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan make any sense?

Those two also might not have won a DPOY in their astonishingly long career, but any all-time defensive list, especially a two-way one, is invalid without them.

Now it’s understandable that was doing it position wise and neither of them played small forward, so, he is not claiming to be better than them. But he did overlook MJ’s teammate, Scottie Pippen in that position.

Is PG a better two-way player than Scottie? Not even on his best day, I would say.

Also read: “Jayson Tatum is Going Crazy”: Paul George Has Celtics’ All-Star as His 2023 MVP Frontrunner

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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