LAS VEGAS -- It has been two years since Paul Georges life was inextricably altered during a USA Basketball exhibition game in which he snapped his right leg in gruesome fashion under the basket at the Thomas & Mack Center, an incident he now refers to simply as the injury.Hes back in Las Vegas this week. Back donning a USA jersey across his chest. Back among the games elite. Back fulfilling his reputation as a dominant talent on the court.George already restored his place in the basketball pecking order before this week, making third-team All-NBA and second-team All-Defensive in 2015-16 while putting up better overall numbers than he did for the Indiana Pacers in the season before the injury. Resuming his spot within Team USA just brings things full circle.It means a lot, George said after Team USAs opening practice of training camp in preparation for the Rio Olympics next month. This is like really a redemption to myself. All the bad that happened on that night, I owed myself this opportunity to come back out here and compete for my country.For all that has been made about stars such as?LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard bowing out of international competition this summer, Georges inclusion cant be emphasized enough.Its one of the great stories of this group, said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketballs managing director. I mean, when you think about it, when you think back to the tragedy when the injury took place, no one could have projected where he would be. And was his career over? Was his career going to be limited because of the injury? Would he ever come back fully? And to see him back and to see what hes accomplished back in the league, its like he didnt miss a beat.While George has reclaimed his perch, its impossible not to notice all that has changed since that fateful night in August 2014, when he chased down Harden to foul him on a fast break and suffered an open tibia-fibula fracture after landing awkwardly at the base of the basket stanchion.Donald Trump went from reality TV show host to presidential hopeful; the Golden State Warriors went from a promising group to the league standard for excellence; Georges Pacers went from knocking on the door of the NBA Finals with consecutive Eastern Conference finals appearances to a new-look group thats hardly recognizable compared with what they were before the injury.Indianas core has been blown up: Frank Vogel now coaches the Orlando Magic; Roy Hibbert is on his second different team; David West is on his second different team; Lance Stephenson is on his third different team.It just goes to show the evolution of this game, George said. Im looked upon as the leader and the longest-[tenured] Pacer now. So its sunk in. I dont think it will officially sink in until training camps started, and Im looking around, and Im the face of it. So its just part of the game, and Ill deal with it.Indianas future, although its a promising one with the offseason additions of Jeff Teague, Al Jefferson and Thaddeus Young, is yet to be determined. What is certain is how George took a guarantee made by Colangelo shortly after the injury that there would a spot waiting for him on the 16 Olympic team, and went and proved he belonged anyway.It was meant to be an incentive for him, Colangelo said. But when you see its actually happened and hes earned it in every way, this is not a gift here. Hes literally earned this spot. Its just a lot of extra love involved in this one. So were very happy for him, and its great to have him here.This summer could end up being a reminder to the world just how good George really is. With no James or Leonard, hell team with Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony as the teams most versatile swingman.The way hes just handled everything: physically to be at the level hes at, emotionally, mentally ... coach Mike Krzyzewski said. I mean, wow. I remember being in a hospital with him. ... You try to envision and talk about, Well, in Rio, youll be there. And you hope that you believe that, you think you do, but then maybe thats not going to happen. And it is. And hopefully we win, and that would be an even better story.That story and the way it unfolds at the Olympics is the final march on Georges comeback tour.Now I know Im healthy, I know Im OK, I know Im 100 percent, George said. Im back to being myself. Its no limitations. Its no thought in my mind that Im limited to something. I kind of just feel like all the chains are off of me and Im free now.Unburdened by the injury, George is embracing being back at the scene where his progress was interrupted.Im just enjoying it, man, he said. Im just enjoying it. This trip is not about the injury. Thats behind me. It happened. Im over it. Its about preparing for a gold medal.Solomon Thomas Super Bowl Jersey .35 million, one-year contract that avoided salary arbitration. Plouffe batted .254 with 14 home runs and 52 RBIs in 477 at-bats last season, his second as a regular in the lineup. Mike McGlinchey Super Bowl Jersey . He just needed to be his best twisting, turning acrobatic self. "I didnt need to be anybody else, I just needed to be myself and be aggressive," said Burks, who scored a career-high 34 points to spark the Utah Jazz to a 118-103 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. https://www.49ersrookiestore.com/49ers-Cj-Beathard-Jersey/Ahkello Witherspoon Super Bowl Jersey . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. Ronnie Lott Super Bowl Jersey . The injury bothered Bledsoe in the Suns victory over the Clippers on Monday and he sat out the teams home loss to Memphis on Thursday night.A taste of the pinnacle of Australian racing has sparked Blake Spriggs desire to make a return to the elite level sooner rather than later.Three years of hard work for Waratah Thoroughbreds paid off for Spriggs when he won his first Group One race on Sir John Hawkwood in The Metropolitan Handicap at Randwick on October 1.It springboarded him and the horse on an unforgettable journey to the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups in which they finished 10th and 18th respectively.I feel like Im at the top of my game, Spriggs told AAP.Hopefully I can bring it back to Sydney and continue getting winners.Being surrounded by superstar jockeys from around the world in the Melbourne Cup gave the 24-year-old an understanding of the level he needs to reach to cement himself as a top-level rider.And he got to experience the atmosphere and build up of Australias great race.Theres nothing like it, Spriggs said.Theres more people that go to the parade the day before than a Randwick meeting on a Saturday.Spriggs is set to ride Lunar Rise for trainer James Cummings in the November Handicap (1400m) at Rosehill on Saturday.Lunar Rises win at at the saame track last Saturday was bittersweet for Spriggs who was on Moral Victory who failed to beat a runner home in the race.ddddddddddddHe had partnered Lunar Rise in a trial eight days earlier but Tim Clark had already been booked for Rosehill.As disappointing as my horse was on the day, I was happy to see Lunar Rise get up because Id done a bit of work on it and gave them the advice that it was ready to fire, Spriggs said.The back-up wont hurt him. Hes a nice big strong horse.He will also ride the Paul Murray-trained Fine Mist in the 1100m-benchmark handicap.Spriggs, who won two races on Fine Mist early in her career, gets back on for the first time since she ran second over 1000m at Warwick Farm on October 3.She feels like a horse that youve got to really get along with and I seem to be able to do that, Spriggs said.Barrier eight is not too bad because shes a filly thats had a wind operation so she needs to be free flowing the whole way.Spriggs will also ride Hesco Gold in the Highway Handicap. ' ' '