OKC Thunder: Paul George makes surprise return just in time

Paul George makes a surprise return from his shoulder injury to help the ailing OKC Thunder. His return was much needed to say the least.

No major updates on Paul George’s shoulder injury were released after being re-evaluated prior to the OKC Thunder’s matchup against Minnesota on Tuesday. But after being listed as questionable prior to the game, George surprisingly made an appearance in the starting lineup.

George missed three games while nursing shoulder soreness, taking on more workload as time went along. While the Thunder desperately needed George to re-join the lineup, losing two of three without him, Donovan said his long-term health trumped temporary issues.

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Still, the Thunder need to continue winning in the home stretch of the season and not having George on the floor makes outscoring opponents difficult. While Oklahoma City held its own on the defensive end, all things considered, putting the ball in the basket felt like pulling teeth at times with Westbrook in a cold spell and no natural shooters on the court.

The Thunder were 28th in scoring during his three-game absence, as well as 29th in offensive efficiency rating. They were also third worst in 3-point shooting at just over 27 percent from behind the arc and second to last in field goal percentage, shooting 41.4 percent.

The only thing worse than reading those ugly numbers is actually watching shots clank off the rim, as OKC desperately searched for scoring options. But hopefully, that’s in the past with George back in the lineup.

With a four-game difference between the Thunder currently in third place and the eighth-place Spurs, playing it safe with George’s health is a decision to roll the dice on losing home-court advantage or a playoff spot altogether.

Even though George has rejoined the lineup, there’s technically still no major update on his soreness. It was nice to know he was getting stronger the longer he sat out and finally felt well enough to suit up for a game, but his soreness hasn’t been reported to have gone away.

This has to be a troubling thought to some extent for Thunder fans who want the best version of George in the playoffs. The good news, however, is if the team doctor’s believed there was more to the story than general soreness, George would continue to be held out.

So for now, we can rest easy knowing George is back. And if the Thunder are able to right the ship and begin winning games, Donovan may have the luxury of resting him closer to the playoffs.