Now that the new season of the NBA is on its heels, the Indiana Pacers would need to have George Hill work double time for the team as Paul George will be out for the season.
While playing for Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) Hill received many honors, including Summit League 'Player of the Year' and was an 'Honorable Mention All-American' his junior season. He was selected 26th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2008 NBA Draft.
But why Hill? Because Larry Bird thinks he got what it takes to take the team forward.
Indiana will start the season against Philadelphia and they need to pull out their big guns for the opening salvo. And according to Bird, Hill will have a bigger role to play for the team due to George broken right leg.
He said "We got some guys we think are going to step up and play well. I thought George Hill was excellent during training camp; he's gotten a lot better. I'm just amazed by how much better (Hill) has got."
This is Hill's fourth season with the Pacers. He averaged 10.3 points in 76 games last year, when Indiana went 56-26 and lost to Miami in the Eastern Conference finals.
Despite having lost a couple of key players, Bird is optimistic that they still stand a chance for the playoffs. Indiana got down to 15 players on Saturday by cutting rookie C.J. Fair and forwards Arinze Onuaku, Chris Singleton and Adonis Thomas.
Bird said "We've got some young kids we want to see get more time, last year our bench didn't play a whole lot, so they're going to get a great opportunity this year to play more."
Bird is the president of basketball operations for the Pacers, and he was the guest of honor at one of the Indiana's biggest annual fundraising events.
He said of the event "You've got to balance it and try to do as much as you can. It depends on timing, my wife and I try to do as much as we can. You can never do enough. Playing in Boston, living in Florida part-time, here and even back in my hometown, you're spread pretty thin at times but you've got to give back. That's what it's all about."
