CAMDEN, N.J. — As the Philadelphia 76ers move forward in the 2025-26 season, the focus will be on the recovery of Paul George who is in his second season with the Sixers. The 9-time All-Star signed a 4-year deal in the 2024 offseason and had a miserable first year in Philadelphia playing only 41 games and seeing his numbers drop across the board.
After missing the first 12 games of the season as he recovered from offseason left knee surgery, George has played 10 games thus far and has begun looking like himself a bit. He had 23 points, six rebounds, and five assists in Friday’s win over the Indiana Pacers and followed that up with 35 points and knocking down seven triples in Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
The sidelined Sixers at the moment have only been able to watch, but George has been impressive as he has a bit of a resurgence.
“It’s been good,” Watford said. “Growing up, watching PG a lot, we all know who he is. So, it feels good to see it and be on this team with him, and I was able to get out there with him a few games, I think. So it’s been good just to see him get back to himself and we all know he is. So, no surprises. No surprises for me.”
George is up to 17.1 points on the season and is shooting 43.3% from deep as he is continuing to become the player the Sixers believed they were getting in the previous season. On top of the offensive resurgence, he is still one of the top defenders in the game–ranking in the 96th percentile per Cleaning the Glass–and he is making the Sixers better on that end of the floor.
“I think he’s been playing well all year, to be honest,” added Tyrese Maxey. “Ever since he’s came back from injury, he’s played pretty well. He’s played confident. What he’s doing on the defensive end is special for us right now.”
George is going to be an X-Factor for the Sixers as time moves on. The success of this group will be determined by the health and play of the team’s star trio.