NBA insider reveals Paul George's debut date for 76ers after suffering injury
Paul George is reportedly set to make his debut for the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday against the Phoenix Suns at the Footprint Center. George missed the Sixers' first five games of the season after suffering a hyperextended in preseason.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, George will suit up on Monday in a showdown against Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and the rest of the Suns. The Sixers hope that PG won't suffer any setbacks and help them get out of the 1-4 hole they are in.
Philly began the campaign without George and 2024 NBA MVP Joel Embiid, who's still under left knee injury management. Tyrese Maxey has done everything he can, but the Sixers have only won once in their first five games.
Embiid's incident with a reporter on Saturday certainly gave the team some bad press. However, George's injury news is a welcome sight for a franchise looking to compete for the title this season.
Paul George suffered the injury on Oct. 14 in a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks. George landed awkwardly on his left leg, and it bent in the wrong direction. There were fears that he could have damaged his knee, but the results came back negative.
According to NBA.com, George didn't tear any ligaments, and there was no structural damage to his left knee. He was diagnosed with a bone bruise and was given a recovery timeline of a week.
However, it took more than a week for him to get cleared, as it's already the third week of the season. The Philadelphia 76ers are understandably cautious, as they invested $214 million in George, who's 34 . He's still among the best players in the league, but has only played at least 70 games in a season once in the past five years.
Denver tried to acquire Paul George from the Clippers
Before entering free agency, Paul George was linked to a potential opt-in scenario wherein he would get traded. One of the teams that expressed interest in George was the Golden State Warriors. However, they didn't want to include prospects like Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski in a deal.
ESPN's Ramona Shelburne recently revealed that the Denver Nuggets also tried to trade for George before he became a free agent. The Nuggets were reportedly ready to unload Michael Porter Jr. and Zeke Nnaji, but the Clippers wanted Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther.
Denver wasn't interested in letting go of their already depleted roster depth, so they went with Russell Westbrook in free agency. The Nuggets are off to a 3-3 start, as they didn't sign a capable replacement for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who joined the Orlando Magic.