Paul George and Mike Conley Jr.’s introductory press conference at the Auerbach Center on Tuesday delivered on just about everything Boston Celtics fans would’ve expected. Both guys are happy to be in Boston and are eager to try and compete for what would be their first NBA championships.
George gave us all the Joel Embiid special and proclaimed that he’s feeling great and this summer is the healthiest his body has been in a while.
“The past couple of years have been rough from a physical standpoint and that weighs on you mentally,” George said via the Celtics’ YouTube page. “When you wanna do things that you know your body has a limitation to [it’s tough]. I feel great. I feel really good physically and I’ve worked hard this summer.”
He went as far to call his transition to Boston a “rebirth” and added that he’s been able to strengthen his knee during the offseason.
Now, the easy skeptical response here is, “well, what else is he going to say up at the podium?”
That’s a fair point.
But, what fans wouldn’t have expected to see was the moment when George effectively walked the walk when he took a playful jab at Joe Mazzulla — who we all know doesn’t do “playful.”
The veteran forward joked about the Celtics having perhaps underestimated his capabilities in their first-round playoff series against him in the spring. He laughed and turned to Mazzulla who just gave him a hard stare. The still image of this should live forever somewhere in Boston’s practice facility (if George does anything memorable with the franchise, of course).
That’s a man who’s feeling untouchable. For George to think that he can poke their bear and get away with it, he must be feeling like he’s back on the Indiana Pacers.
I mean, did he not see the viral video of Mazzulla sparring in the octagon back in July? He looked like an absolute weapon.
George is lucky that Joe didn’t just put him in a guillotine hold right there in the Auerbach Center press room. He should’ve been on thin ice after he earlier had to be corrected by Brad Stevens that the Celtics do, in fact, have more NBA titles than the rival Los Angeles Lakers. Brad had his fastball. He joked that the Cs actually have six more titles than L.A., who subtly claimed five Minneapolis titles from the 1950s.
Also, credit to Mazzulla for having restraint in that moment. He surely wanted to make it clear that disrespect will not be tolerated.
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