Paul George Mocks LeBron James? Pacers Star Posts Gatorade Photo, Says 'Stay Hydrated'

Indiana Pacers star Paul George may have used his Instagram account to take a not-so-subtle shot at Miami Heat star LeBron James on Monday.

George, 24, uploaded a photo of himself drinking Gatorade to his social media accounts, along with the caption, “Stay hydrated!!!!” The post went up just days after the first game of the NBA Finals, during which James exited with four minutes remaining due to severe cramps in his left leg.

A broken air conditioning system inside the AT&T, home to the San Antonio Spurs, caused on-court temperatures to exceed 90 degrees. As a result, a severely dehydrated James experienced cramps of such severity that he had to be carried to the Heat bench.

If George’s Gatorade post was a subtle dig at James, he will have joined the sports beverage brand in its mockery of the four-time NBA MVP. After Game 1, Gatorade openly criticized James on its official Twitter account for allowing cramps to affect his performance. “Our athletes can take the heat,” the brand said in one tweet.

However, George may not have meant the post as an affront to James. One hour after the Gatorade photo went up, he tweeted a response to the fans who questioned his previous post. “Twitter is at an all time high of… Ignorance!” he wrote.

Aside from the timing of his Gatorade post, fans noted that George may have had an obvious motivation to throw shade at James; the Heat eliminated the Pacers in six games during the Eastern Conference Finals.