Source of Paul George's Elbow Injury Finally Revealed

Paul George was injured on a dive with Jusuf Nurkic

When Paul George became injured during the 2021-22 season, it derailed some season trajectories for the Clippers. It was a pivotal moment for the Clippers, but they managed to survive it to make the 8th seed. Clippers President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank revealed the exact moment Paul George became injured.

Paul George's UCL injury occurred on December 6, 2021, against the Portland Trail Blazers. The exact moment of injury was when he and Jusuf Nurkic dove for a loose ball.

"A 7-foot-2 dude lands on his elbow at the exact spot to do the damage," Lawrence Frank said.

It appears that this is the sequence that altered Paul George's season -- and in turn, the season of the 2021-22 LA Clippers.

George did not attempt a 3-pointer for rest of this game, took two weeks off, came back for two games, then was diagnosed with torn UCL in right elbow. https://t.co/oXpf6A57Y2 pic.twitter.com/C2uJlJwLjI

— Law Murray 💡 (@LawMurrayTheNU) April 20, 2022

It was a moment that Frank described as a freak injury. For the Clippers, it meant something much more. The team was on a trajectory to get the 6th seed and avoid the play-in tournament when Paul George was playing. Instead, George ended up missing 48 games because of that unfortunate incident.

At that time, Kawhi Leonard was also believed to be ahead of schedule with a return to play being a "strong possibility." After George's injury, the Clippers couldn't hold on to the 6th seed and it start to become less worth it to rush Kawhi Leonard back from injury.

Even though the Clippers managed to have a winning 42-40 record despite Paul George's injury, it's still very worth wondering just how the team would have ended up if that collision with Jusuf Nurkic never happened.

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