Playoff P has emerged.
Former Oklahoma City Thunder and current Los Angeles Clippers wing Paul George led LA to a Game 5 victory over the Utah Jazz to take a 3-2 series lead — and he did so as co-star Kawhi Leonard was sidelined with a knee injury.
George scored 37 points on 12-for-22 shooting while grabbing 16 rebounds and dishing five assists. Twenty-two of his points came in the first half.
George is the first Clipper in franchise history to record at least 35 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in a playoff game, according to the Associated Press.
This is George’s third game in a row with more than 30 points. After not reaching that mark a single time in the series against the Dallas Mavericks, he is averaging 29.2 points in the five games against Utah while shooting above 41% from 3.
He carried the Clippers over Utah and Bojan Bogdanovic, who had 32 points and nine 3-pointers. Donovan Mitchell finished with 21 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Los Angeles has now won three games in a row to take a 3-2 series lead. If they can hold on and win another game against the Jazz, the Clippers will advance to the Western Conference Finals to face the Phoenix Suns.
