5 takeaways from Paul George’s 1st Sixers press conference originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
For the first time in his NBA career, Paul George posed for photos with a No. 8 jersey.
With No. 13 (Wilt Chamberlain) and No. 24 (Bobby Jones) retired by the Sixers, George smiled and held up No. 8 for the cameras after his introductory press conference Tuesday.
“I definitely looked forward to coming to Philly,” George said from the Sixers training complex in Camden, New Jersey. “My family looked forward to it. We felt that this was the best and next step in this phase of my career. I thought everything just aligned perfectly — where they’re at and where they’re trying to go, and where I’m trying to get to as well.
“I think we’ve got a real, legitimate shot. I’ve always been a fan of Tyrese (Maxey) and Joel (Embiid) from afar. And Joel has secretly been one of my closest All-Star Game friends. It kind of felt inevitable that at some point we would link up and be teammates. So I’m all-in. My family’s here and all-in. And I’m excited. I’m looking forward to this next opportunity.”
Here are five takeaways from George’s first Sixers press conference:
Secret’s out
When Embiid joined George on ESPN’s NBA Countdown set during the Finals, he gave the nine-time All-Star wing a sly grin as he said, “Hopefully, this offseason we find a way to get better and add some pieces.”
The public recruitment didn’t come out of the blue.
“I’m not much of a social guy in the All-Star setting,” George said. “I kind of keep to myself. So randomly, he came to me and we just started talking — and this was a couple All-Stars back. Then it got to a point where it’s like, man, I look forward to talking to Joel this All-Star weekend. The next All-Star comes and here we are again, chopping it up. … Over time, we just built a friendship.
“I think what kind of hit it home is we had a conversation before these convos even started. … He opened up to me. I don’t have a lot of people I talk to. I keep to myself. But he was like, man, regardless of what goes on, I look at you as someone that I want to be friends with for a long part of my life.
“That was deep to me because we knew each other, but we didn’t know each other on that level yet. For him to open up to me, it kind of just felt right. … So from that point on, we built a stronger relationship to where it came to this summer, we talked, and we had our ways of how this could work — what it’d look like, us being out there together. At the end of the day, it just made sense. We both were at the same level of what we wanted out of it. And we felt we could’ve helped each other. I think our relationship is pretty strong.”
Asked about how Embiid compares to past superstar teammates of his, George called the 2022-23 MVP “just a hard worker.”
“I’ve played with them all,” George said, “from (Russell Westbrook), (Kawhi Leonard). They all have the same intangibles, and that’s (being) super competitive. They want to win against all odds and work extremely hard. And I see that same quality in Joel, which makes me excited to be alongside him out there. … I’ve seen it. He plays through injuries; he wanted to be on the floor.
“And that’s what’s most exciting, when guys are committed to being out there and playing hard and working hard. When it’s compared to other stars that I’ve played with, Joel has those same qualities that you look for. You want to be teammates with somebody who wants to win at a high level.”
Planning to just do his job
Every aspect of the Sixers’ new star trio won’t magically click into place at training camp.
Still, it’s nice that there’s no positional overlap with a rapid 23-year-old guard, a 6-foot-8 wing, and an enormous, multifaceted center. And George has a clear initial idea of what the Sixers need from him.
“I know what I’m out there to do,” he said. “That’s ultimately put the ball in the basket and try to guard the best player on the other team. … The three of us, I think, can carry a ton of that workload.
“I look forward to playing with such a presence in Joel. I don’t think I’ve played with someone at that level and that size that dominates, so I’m really looking forward to what that looks like on the floor. … I know what I’m here to do, and just go out there and do my job.”
One simple way George can fit alongside Embiid and Maxey is taking the catch-and-shoot three-pointers that come his direction and making a good percentage.
George just had a strong season in that regard; he shot 4.4 catch-and-shoot triples per game with the Clippers and converted 45.4 percent.
“Obviously Tyrese has the youth,” George said. “He has the legs, the speed, the quickness. Similar to when I played alongside Russ — just the opportunities he creates with his speed and his tempo to push the ball. I think I can space the floor for him, and just be a veteran to help him. … I think we just complement each other so well. And the same goes for Joel. I’ve been watching their games and I know it’s tough for him a lot of times to be able to play 1-on-1 from the block, just because of the spacing and the shooters around him.
“So I’m looking forward to that, giving him a chance to play his game and be aggressive on the block, be able to make quick moves to go score because there is that space there. And just being a late-game performer, someone to take a…
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