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Dec 8, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) and forward Paul George (8) defend against Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Paul George's Honest Take on First Sixers Season With Joel Embiid

Originally posted on Philadelphia 76ers on SI
By Justin Grasso | Last updated Apr 13, 2025 9:25 PM ET

Heading into the 2024-2025 NBA season, the Philadelphia 76ers had championship expectations. Despite following a first-round exit for the first time since 2020, the Sixers’ addition of Paul George to join the star core of Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey was supposed to be the final piece to the puzzle to help the Sixers get where they needed to go.

Fast forward to April 13, and the Sixers are playing their final game at the Wells Fargo Center until October. There’s no Play-In appearance and no playoffs. Just hope that everybody gets healthy and back on track.

Was it a surprising season? “For sure,” said Sixers forward Paul George.

“Obviously, we didn’t see ourselves being 13th or whatever we are in the East, given personnel, but we did have a lot of unfortunate things go on throughout the year with injuries, not being able to stay healthy, but obviously, being hopeful that we could be successful right away.”

On Sunday, George took a moment to look back on the season and reflect on spending time on the court with Embiid at times during the year.

“I thought we won games and we had great moments,” George explained.

“We [also] saw what it looked like when it didn’t click. Obviously, it’s a different situation for both of us. I haven’t played with someone as dominant and as good at that position as Joel is on both sides of the floor. That was an adjustment for me. With that, you kind of have to see it for what it is. And I pride myself on being able to play in any situation, whether it’s on the ball, whether it’s off the ball. So it was a learning curve for me to kind of adjust to playing that style.”

George played in 41 games with the Sixers this season. Embiid appeared in just 19. Overall, they shared the court for 15 games, getting a super small sample size of what they can do together, leaving George with questions heading into the 2025-2026 season.

“I think it was a good lesson for me to kinda see and experience to kinda be on the floor with him to see what works,” the nine-time All-Star added. “How can I play off him? How can we play together? I think that’s a continued relation to build on the court, but it just comes down to trust in one another. Trust in our process. That’ll get better all year.”

George claims he is optimistic about his on-court chemistry with Embiid. While it’s far from a finished product, George remains confident in his ability to adjust on a personal level and mesh with the superstar center when they both get healthy.

“We both look forward to it, and I think, again, it’s a better understanding from both of us I think going into the next year,” he finished.