



The Cavs escaped Game 1 of their opening round series with the Pacers with a 109-108 home win after a C.J. Miles jumper came up short at the buzzer. That Miles was the one to take that shot was a point of contention for the Pacers, as Paul George felt he should’ve gotten the ball back from Miles in order to take the final shot.

George told reporters after the game that he’s “got to get the ball” in that kind of situation and had a conversation with Miles about it. That quote blew up, becoming the pull quote of the night all over social media, even after Doc Rivers scrunched up his face and said of a potential strategy to hold for the last shot down two “like the dumbest thing” he’s ever heard.

ESPN posted the quote to Instagram and it got tons of likes, including one from Cavs shooting guard and professional bucket-getter J.R. Smith.

https://twitter.com/AztecMBBElite/status/853429814350368768

Smith was one of the players that doubled George at the top of the key, along with LeBron James who also joined to trap George and force him to pass the ball up to Miles. George then sprinted back to the ball and had created space between he and James, now in single coverage on him, but Miles chose to create space and get the shot off before the buzzer.

I can’t tell if this is pettiness from J.R., as the opponent who helped force George to pass, or if it’s just Smith respecting someone else wanting the ball and wanting to take a big shot. With J.R., it could be one or both of those things.