NBA Star Power Index: Playoff Paul George turns critics into clowns; LeBron James unloads scheduling slander

Trae Young has the Hawks on the brink of the conference finals, and Chris Paul has the worst luck ever

Welcome back to NBA Star Power Index -- a weekly gauge of the players who are most controlling the buzz around the league. Reminder: Inclusion on this list isn't necessarily a good thing. It simply means that you're capturing the NBA world's attention. It's worth noting that this is not a ranking. The players listed are in no particular order as it pertains to the buzz they're generating.  "He's a monster. This dude is a monster. It'll be one of those things where I look back when he's a Hall of Famer, he's an established superstar in this league and I can say I was part of that process and I worked with this gentleman. Seeing Trae up close and the things he's able to accomplish and the things he's able to go out on the floor and do night in and night out at such a young age with the poise that he has, with the swag that he has, the confidence that he has in his abilities, I'm proud to be a part of it. He listens to me and I try to help him as much as I can with little tidbits here and there, but just to see him night in and night out, I'm extremely happy for him, I'm proud of him and I'm happy to call him my teammate."   Durant became the first player in NBA history to score 45 points, pull in 15 rebounds and dish out 10 assists in a playoff game. He did so on 69.6 percent shooting, the third-highest mark ever in a 40-point playoff triple double, according to ESPN Stats & Info. It was the ultimate melding of what has made Durant great for his entire career and what led most to believe James was even better, near-flawless scoring paired with excellence in every other facet of the game while his teammates floundered beside him. Durant carried his team to an inexplicable victory, and he did so by doing just about everything a player can do on a basketball court.  The days of Paul George being an easy postseason punching bag are over. Not that the constant mocking was ever warranted in the first place. George has laid a few high-profile eggs in his career, but he's had a lot of monster moments, too. Wednesday night was another one of them.  With the Clippers tied 2-2 with the Jazz and Kawhi Leonard out, George led the Clippers to a 119-111 Game 5 win in Utah with 37 points, 16 rebounds and five assists on 12 of 22 shooting. He was spectacular, as he has been for pretty much this entire postseason.