Another factor was that playing on the New York Knicks' glamorous big-city stage, alongside a natural spotlight magnet like Chen, brought George plenty of attention, especially with the team's absurd record of 21 wins in 22 games so far this season.
Together, those factors gave George the confidence to make another push for a starting spot in the All-Star Game.
The Knicks' front office, coaching staff, and players all understood the plan without needing it spelled out. Naturally, they immediately began taking their own "initiative," canvassing for votes for PG through every channel available.
That even included tonight's game.
Seven o'clock that evening arrived.
The Knicks hosted the Indiana Pacers at home.
The final score was 121–116.
The New York Knicks secured another victory, this time by five points.
As for the players' numbers, Chen Xi played 36 minutes, shooting 9-for-15 from the field, 3-for-5 from three, and 4-for-5 from the line. He finished with only 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 8 assists.
Paul George, the team's second cornerstone, played 41 minutes. He shot 13-for-24 from the field, 4-for-9 from three, and 9-for-11 from the line, racking up 39 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals.
In fact, the two stars' stat lines made New York's intentions that night quite obvious.
Clearly, Chen Xi had deliberately moved the ball and shared possession, letting George take more shots.
Ultimately, the idea was to let George put up better numbers on a night when his shot was falling reasonably well, thereby helping him draw more votes.
Granted, there was a whiff of stat-padding about it.
But this was a gentleman's business! How could anyone call it padding?!
Generally speaking, a team taking this approach for one player still ran a certain amount of risk.
After all, even padding stats required ability.