Paul George was texting with Gordon Hayward minutes after his leg injury

OKLAHOMA CITY -- One prominent name that will always be connected to horrific leg injuries is Thunder forward Paul George. The wing suffered a gruesome broken leg injury after colliding with the basket stanchion during a Team USA scrimmage in the summer of 2014. George missed 76 games of the 2014-15 season while experiencing a grueling recovery process from two compound fractures in his lower right leg.

The 27-year-old already said last month that he was in touch with Gordon Hayward on the night of the injury, but he revealed some further details about their exchange at Friday's shootaround, including the fact that Hayward was texting George within minutes of suffering the injury.

“Yeah. I talked to him – immediately after it happened, I sent him a text," George said. "And he probably got back to me within 20 or 30 minutes of him being in the back. So I was just – I didn’t feel what he felt, but I’ve been there and know that pain, and know what that feels like being in that position. So I just wanted to be there for him.”

The duo has held a strong bond together ever since being drafted together in the same 2010 class. 

“We had a really good relationship," George explained. "At one point we had the same agency, and we worked out a couple of times together. And he’s somebody that I’ve always admired his game, us playing the same position and kind of playing the same way. So I always had the hugest, utmost respect for Gordon.”

Hayward is three weeks into his recovery after undergoing ankle surgery to repair the fracture and George knows the long road that lies ahead. With that in mind, he's tried to be a support mechanism for his friend since he understands the process.

“I just told Gordon, you know, it sucks," said George. "It’s what we all didn’t hope and wish for. But I just wanted him to be mindful that there’s going to be some tough days. That’s just what it is. There’s going to be days where he feels he’s not getting better or things aren’t going right. Just embrace those. That’s how I had to do it. That’s what mentors told me.

"As much as there’s going to be good days, the bad ones are going to come with it. And you just have to be prepared for those. Don’t get discouraged, don’t be down on yourself. It’s part of the rehab stage. And I just told him don’t get tired with the work. It’s tedious work but it’s to build towards getting better. So hopefully my words carried a little more weight by myself going through that. But we’re all wishing and praying for him.”