Nothing has gone right for the Philadelphia 76ers this season. Joel Embiid has played just 19 games, and seemingly appears to be moving in the direction of being shut down for the rest of the season as he and the Sixers figure out how to best manage his lingering knee issues. Paul George has similarly been limited due to injuries, playing in just 38 games, and operating below the All-Star production we’re used to seeing from him.
As a result, the Sixers are 20-37, in the midst of an eight-game losing streak that most recently featured an embarrassing loss to the tanking Chicago Bulls where they trailed by as many as 50 points. The only positive that could happen this spring for Philly appears to be on draft lottery night, when the Sixers could retain their first-round pick if it falls within the top six selections. If it lands outside the top six, it goes to Oklahoma City. Currently, Philadelphia has the sixth-worst record in the NBA. Tanking — by shutting down Embiid and George — feels like the logical solution for the Sixers.
The Sixers, as of Wednesday afternoon, haven’t made a decision on shutting down either player, though an announcement on Embiid could happen in the coming days.
George, however, is already deciding to shut down… though it’s not related to his on-court performance. This week, George announced on his podcast, “Podcast P with Paul George,” that he would be going on hiatus from hosting the podcast.
“It’s no secret that this season up to this point hasn’t been what we envisioned,” George said. “I know my goal when I first signed with Philadelphia was to bring a championship to these amazing fans here. I still remain positive about that, and that is still the case and where I’m coming from. With that being said, though, I want to let the Podcast P family know that after today’s episode with Dwight [Howard] I plan to take a break from the [podcast] just to focus on getting my body right, getting mentally right, and, you know, help this squad make a push toward our goal to finish the season out and give ourselves a chance to be in contention, to compete for a championship.”
George mentioned that another deciding factor in taking a break from the podcast was due to not being able to film in person with his co-hosts, though it is telling that he feels as though he needs to hang the microphone up to focus on the rest of the season. Though George mentioned he wanted to “finish the season out” and “give ourselves a chance to be in contention” for a championship, that does not appear to be the direction in which the Sixers are headed. But his words do suggest he intends to keep playing through this pinky finger injury that has forced him to receive routine injections to numb the pain.
That’s an admirable path forward from George, even when it might not make the most sense for Philly’s future. It’s also interesting to hear those words from George on a show that aired the same day that the Sixers surrendered 142 points to the Bulls, with George in the lineup. After that game, George said the team doesn’t “have the habits” of a playoff contender.
“We’ve shown no sign of a team that will compete,” George told reporters. “We just don’t have the habits of a champion or a playoff-contending team would have. So, to be honest, right now it’s a little far-fetched. All we can do is work hard and try to just keep going for one another, but we’ve shown no signs of — forget championship, but a playoff-contending team here.”
George may want to compete for a championship this season, but that’s looking increasingly unlikely with each passing day in Philadelphia. And if Embiid does get shut down for the season, perhaps George will follow suit. Fans will just have to wait to hear about it on his podcast.
