George Addresses Mental Health

Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George was making headlines for the wrong reasons prior to Game 5 against the Dallas Mavericks, bearing the brunt of the blame in LA's pair of losses in their ongoing first round series.

Fortunately for LA, George flipped the script on Tuesday night, erupting for 35 points in the Clippers' 154-111 blowout win.

However, it was his postgame comments that drew the most attention.

Entering Tuesday, George was averaging 15.3 points on 29% shooting from the field and 22.2% from three-point range against the Mavs.

After the breakout performance in Game 5, George revealed he'd been in a "dark place" mentally in the NBA's bubble.

"I was just in a bad place and I found my way. I'm back and I look forward to the rest of this run."

While the reemergence of "Playoff P" is certainly noteworthy, George's candidness with a topic that athletes don't often discuss drew special praise, from analysts and fellow players alike.

First Things First cohost Brandon Marshall, who has been very outspoken about his own bouts with mental health issues, addressed the topic on Wednesday morning.

Marshall said George's decision to block users he doesn't follow on Instagram from commenting on his pictures served as an early sign that something was off:

"You don't see star players turning off mentions and comments on social media because we know that the media is watching and it'll be a tagline. It'll be a headline on all the talk shows."

Coach David Fizdale, a 2-time NBA champion as an assistant coach with the Miami Heat, applauded George's openness on Get Up.

"I think that being that vulnerable and open shows a courage, to me, especially for a Black man to talk about something that he's going through mentally."

And Skip Bayless also credited George not just for his on-court performance, but for being frank about his mental state earlier in the series. 

In talking publicly about the issue, George joins a growing list of prominent athletes that are opening the floor for a discussion about an issue that affects millions of people.

By being open and honest, George can count himself among the likes of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Michael Phelps, Serena Williams and many others bringing awareness to mental health issues and offering their support.