On his 4th NBA team, Paul George is in a unique situation. For more than a decade, George has been the best or 2nd best player on a Championship contender. However, after signing a four-year, $212 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, he comes to the team as arguably the third-best player. In perennial MVP candidate Joel Embiid and ascending superstar Tyrese Maxey, the team has ample star power.
But, in Paul, the team gets a safety valve. Due to Embiid’s injury history, PG works as an insurance policy for Philly. Rather than force Embiid to gut it out, the team can instead turn to their newest acquisition. A consistent 25+ ppg scorer, George gives the team an offensive punch. In theory, that punch should be equally devastating to keep the team afloat without Joel.
As a result, the team could stagger their minutes and games to remain competitive. Last season, before his injury, Embiid had the 76ers as the second-seed in the Conference. However, they were the 7th seed when the playoffs began as he was out for most of the year. With the addition of George, that kind of collapse feels unlikely. And, PG13 is ready to go with this new opportunity.
Paul George is looking forward to life as a 76er
Apart from a few eyebrow-raising comments about the “B Team”, Paul George was perfectly respectful talking about his former team. Deeming his time with the Los Angeles Clippers as one without regret, he was happy with how things came to a close. Instead, his focus is solely on being with the Philadelphia 76ers now.
“Amazing time [in L.A.]. No regret,” George said. “they went out and gave me an opportunity to play home, which, at that point in time was a ton of value for myself to be able to play in front of my family, my friends, and have a legitimate shot to chase a championship every season. Obviously, injuries kind of deterred us a little bit. But just to speak on that situation as a whole, there’s no ill will … again, forever grateful for the opportunity that they gave me to come back. We had a great mutual talk as it all played out, and I felt it was great closure on the situation. I’m happy for them, they’re happy for me, and I’m a Sixer now. So that’s behind me.“
At 34, time is winding down on the former MVP candidate’s career. However, his focus is fully on the upcoming season. Calling the pairing up with Joel an inevitability, George made his commitment to the team perfectly clear. Both him and his family as he calls it, are “all-in”, and ready for this new arc.
“I thought everything just aligned perfectly. Where they’re at and where they’re trying to go and where I’m trying to get to, as well. I think we got a real legitimate shot,” George said. “I’ve always been a fan of Tyrese and Joel from afar, and Joel has secretly been one of my closest All-Star Game friends. And so, it kind of felt inevitable that at some point we would link up and be teammates. So, I’m all-in. My family’s here all-in, and I’m excited, and looking forward to this next opportunity.“
The biggest gap that PG13 can bridge for the 76ers
For years, the biggest question mark about the 76ers has been health. Despite the regular season brilliance, including an MVP for JoJo, the perennial “yeah-but” is simple. When it comes to the postseason, the team underdelivers. Usually, the reasoning or excuse, depending on how you look at it, for Philly fans is simple. The stars weren’t healthy.
That exact problem is where Paul hopes to come in as the solution. While his own history is checkered with injury risk, as a collective, Philadelphia could hope to cancel out their star’s injury problems. By managing their games and playing time, the ideal scenario for the 76ers sees them finally make a deep playoff run. For a team that is yet to make a Conference Finals in over 20 years, that hope is one to live by. And it is the same mentality that PG13 is bringing over.
“I think just taking the pressure off Joel,” George explained. “I think I can kind of help him get through a season healthy. And again, it’s just not putting so much pressure on him. Regardless of how good you feel, I think pressure causes a lot of injuries as well, and you think you have to get overplayed, you have to touch every possession, that kind of just wears you down, especially for how physical he is. So that’s the key. Everybody do their part, make sure we’re working on our bodies, and that we don’t just put that pressure on one individual to go out and win games for us.”
An agenda and a plan are in place. But, can the Philadelphia 76ers finally exercise their postseason demons? We shall see.
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