The Philadelphia 76ers are set to face off against the Phoenix Suns tonight for their sixth game of the NBA regular season, which could mark Paul George’s long-awaited debut following a preseason knee injury. Despite being sidelined, George is already eyeing the November 6 showdown against his former team, the Los Angeles Clippers.
George injured his knee in a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks, which has kept him off the court until now. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, “Philadelphia 76ers star Paul George is expected to make his season debut on Monday vs. the Phoenix Suns, barring any setbacks,” Charania reported.
On his show, Podcast P with Paul George, George recently shared that Wednesday’s game would carry special significance, despite being in the Clippers’ new arena. “Well, it’ll be new feelings, it being a new arena that I’m entering,” George said. “Like, there’s no ties to this arena. There’s ties to the organization and that fan base and people that are still in the front office, people that are still on the coaching staff, people that are in the training room.”
“There’s still gonna be a lot of ties there,” he continued. “As it always is returning to familiar places, it’s always gonna be emotional because you spent so much time with these people and you’ve really learned, counted them and looked at them as family. It’ll definitely have some emotional touch to it.”
Paul George #13 of the LA Clippers is restrained by James Harden #1 of the LA Clippers arguing for a foul during a 102-100 win over the Denver Nuggets at Crypto.com Arena. Harry How/Getty Images
George’s frustration over missing games
The preseason injury sidelined George for multiple games, and he opened up about his frustration. “I mean, it has been completely frustrating just from wanting to finally get started with these guys and using these early games to build and find chemistry and just getting on the same page and getting up to a good start,” George explained.
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“But since I’ve been out, I’ve still been engaged, still staying locked in with the guys, helping from the sideline, whether it’s in games, practices, and then now being able to be a full participant in practice,” he added. “Now it’s just the next step in that phase.”
George’s last action with the Sixers
George’s last game with the 76ers was, in fact, the preseason matchup against the Hawks when he sustained the knee injury after scoring 8 points in 12 minutes.
Previously, George suited up for the Sixers’ preseason opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he led all scorers with 23 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and contributed 2 assists over 26 minutes on the floor.
