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New Nike ad wishes Paul George well in recovering from devastating leg injury (Photo)
Paul George's recovery from the horrific leg injury he suffered during last Friday night's USA Basketball Showcase scrimmage is just beginning. The 24-year-old All-Star will likely miss the entire 2014-15 NBA season, all but scuttling the Indiana Pacers' hopes of making another deep postseason run while simultaneously pressing pause on George's ascent just as he's starting to enter his prime; this is a considerable bummer just about any way you slice it.
That hasn't stopped folks from doing their best to cheer George up, though, with pick-me-ups ranging from get-well-soon cards to slick six-figure Italian sports cars. George's footwear and apparel endorsers at Nike Basketball threw their well wishes into the ring on Thursday with this ad, shared via Twitter with the tagline, "Without the setbacks, the comebacks aren’t as sweet."
Here's the ad's copy:
Heard this is a career ending injury.
Then the doctors said full recovery.
Heard the guys were frozen on the sideline.
Then your teammates rushed to the hospital.
Heard everyone is worried.
Then you said you'll be back better than ever.
There are two sides to everything.
The worst has happened.
The best is next.
The simple, minimal ad accentuates the positive in George's predicament — the tibia-fibula fracture was clean, the surrounding soft tissue wasn't too badly damaged, you're young, you're strong, this could've been a lot worse, etc. — without cranking up the volume on the comeback to quite the degree of some similar previous ads, like the ones Adidas made for Robert Griffin III and Derrick Rose. The ubiquitous brand's slogan and logo are there, but it's at base more about George himself, how dark things have seemed for him over the past week, and how they're already beginning to brighten up. If George himself can draw some motivation from it as he goes about the difficult, tedious business of healing, recuperating, rehabilitating and returning to the court, then so much the better.
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
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