Paul George finds himself in a 0-2 hole against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, a terrifying place to be. 

George has been individually excellent in the series, which was always expected. He's one of the top players in the NBA and has been anointed as the Pacers' franchise player, but their superstar sounds like he's on an island trying to compete right now.

Perhaps making it more painful for George is the Pacers' history of being eliminated by LeBron-led teams dating back to his Miami Heat days. George appears to be headed that way again, and after the Game 2 loss he was critical of his teammates.

Re-signing Lance Stephenson was a wild-card move by the Pacers after the trade deadline. Lance was a key piece in those other Pacers playoff teams, and bringing him back had a hint of hope they'd be able to rekindle their previous success together.

George was critical of Stephenson following the 117-111 loss, pointing out Lance's tendency to let his emotions seep onto the court.

"He's gotta learn to control himself. He's gotta learn to just be in the moment. Lance, in our locker room, is looked upon as one of our leaders. His body language has to improve, just for the team," George said.

"We all know Lance is an emotional guy, and a lot of it is just his heart and his competitiveness that that emotion comes out on. He's just gotta channel that and put it towards making effort plays on the court and doing whatever he needs for us to succeed."

George didn't stop there, though. He also had some interesting words to direct at second-year big man Myles Turner. 

“He’s gotta know at this point we need him to take it to the next level, and we’ll continue to work with him," George said. "I’ve been in his ear, all the way up to this point of that next step and growth for him, but in this league you kind of have to find it.”

While that's not necessarily as severe as what he had to say about Lance, George pointing out that they need more out of the young big man is a big statement to make to the world. The Pacers have their backs against the wall and face a must-win Game 3. 

How the team performs under the scrutiny of George and crushing grip of LeBron is huge for the Pacers. George has a player option can opt out of in 2018, and Indiana may need to consider its options ahead of losing him for nothing. 

Indiana may be in too deep to make a comeback against LeBron, but how the team responds to this situation has big implications for the team even if the Pacers are facing certain elimination.