ESPN Survey: Paul George is The Ultimate Antidote To LeBron James’ Offensive Greatness

Indiana Pacers small forward Paul George appears to have already earned respect from fellow NBA players in only his fourth season in the league after the versatile swingman topped an ESPN survey as the best player to defend reigning two-time NBA MVP and Champion LeBron James.

Fresh from earning his multi-million contract extension with the Pacers, the 23-year-old George is now being considered as one of the premier defensive players in the league and perhaps the best player that can stop James in a regular basketball game.

George, who was selected to the All-Defensive second team after recording 1.8 steals per game during the 2012-13 season, reportedly earned 25 percent of the total votes ahead of former Defensive Player of the Year Metta World Peace (18 percent) and perennial All-Defensive team member Kobe Bryant (14 percent) in the survey made by ESPN to determine who's the best NBA player to defend James.

George and James already went head-to-head in the highly-physical Eastern Conference Finals series last May. In the matchup, George rose up on occasion and became a full-fledged star by racking up big numbers despite being guarded by James, a five-time All-Defensive team member.

But aside from his impact on the offensive end, George also showed that he could guard the best player in the world one-on-one. In fact, George held down James below 50 percent shooting in four out of the seven games in the series. The Pacers star also forced the MVP to commit 20 turnovers at almost three miscues per game.

Though Indiana had excellent team defense in the series, it was George's athletic 6-foot-9, 220-pound body that made things miserable for James in that playoff showdown, which went to seven games before the Heat won the series, 4 games to 3,

Moreover, a former All-NBA Defensive Team member agreed that George is steadily emerging as the ultimate antidote to James' offensive greatness.

"The key is to have another long, athletic player who LeBron has to guard at the other end, to make him work hard on defense too. Paul George is the guy," said the player in the survey.

ESPN reportedly surveyed 26 active NBA players anonymously to determine their pulse about the four-time MVP and arguably greatest basketball player in this era.