5 takeaways from Paul George's 1st Sixers press conference

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 lot of pressure off both those guys to close games out, to extend leads, to finish games. I’m just looking forward to being on the floor with those two because I know they’ll help me a ton.”

‘Kawhi speaks, you listen’ 

Sixers head coach Nick Nurse has traveled through much of the basketball world. He has connections from the D League, from summer leagues, from his stint leading the Canadian men’s national team. 

Nurse served as an assistant coach on Dwane Casey’s Raptors staff for the 2018 All-Star Game and George came off the bench that night (as did Andre Drummond). But in terms of Nurse and George’s history, that’s apparently about it. 

“It’s a little early,” George said. “We’re still getting to know each other. But the time I’ve been around him, it’s been awesome. One of those people you learn from, from afar. I see how hard his team plays and the respect that players have for him goes a long way. 

“I was a teammate of Kawhi’s and Kawhi spoke highly of him. Kawhi speaks, you listen. I’ve learned that. So I have the utmost respect for Coach Nurse and I’m looking forward to being coached.”

In a separate session with reporters, Nurse said his conversations with George have been “really enjoyable.”

“I think he’s one of probably a dozen guys that I’ve never really come across in coaching him or workouts in the summer or whatever,” he said. “So it’s kind of a fresh start. I’m super impressed by him. He’s a good guy. Very intelligent, knows the game, thoughtful about what he wants out of his team, what he can deliver, who he wants to be and all that stuff. So I’ve been super impressed with him so far.”

Getting accustomed to ‘Brotherly Love’ 

George is also in the early days of learning what Philadelphia is all about. 

Everything’s sunny so far. 

“It’s been a warm welcoming since I’ve been here, from free dinners to good cheesesteaks. … I think everywhere we’ve been is a lot of love,” George said. “You can tell the city is ready and thirsty to win. Already, I’m ready to get to work. Put the hard hat on and go out and try to compete for a championship. It’s been nothing but love since the second we’ve been here.”

And yes, George understands that slumps, losing streaks and underwhelming playoff performances are all subject to criticism with a passionate fan base that hasn’t reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 23 years and hasn’t won an NBA title in 41. 

“At the end of the day, it’s Brotherly Love, right? So I’m looking forward to it,” George said with a smile. “I think pressure is good, I think intensity is good, and that’s what you get up for. You want the fans to be fired up. You want them to put that pressure on you to go out, perform, and win games. 

“That’s our job, so I’m looking forward to it. Be as critical and as hard as you can. I think it’s going to work out for myself and for the team. … I’m not scared or shying away from that at any point, at any stage.”

George not the only move that matters 

Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey pursued George largely because he believes top-end talent swings playoff series.

However, as Nurse highlighted, the Sixers didn’t just land George and call it a summer. 

“As excited as we are about some of the things — obviously Paul George headlining — I think a lot of the other moves were super critical,” Nurse said. “For example, Drummond backing up Joel. I think everyone understands that we needed a good veteran guy who can start. If we need him to play some games 40 minutes, 38 minutes, whatever it is, we’ve got a guy who can do it and provide incredible presence around the basket. 

“And then I think we touched a lot of the things we needed to touch. We got a little veteran experience, a little shooting added. We certainly got some dynamic wings in Caleb (Martin) and Kelly (Oubre Jr.) back in there, too. We’ve got Ricky (Council IV) back in the fold, and he just keeps getting better and better. So the PG thing is huge, but I think all those things matter.” 

The Sixers will have 13 players on standard NBA contracts once they sign point guard Reggie Jackson.

Morey indicated that the team intends to fill one of its two open roster slots before the season. 

“I was just talking to Coach Nurse,” Morey said, “and Joel, Paul and Tyrese are our partners in (determining), ‘How do we put together the right group to win this?’ We feel great about the players we’ve brought in. But as folks in Philly know, I always say that a team evolves during a season. As we see things that are needed to address the team, we have draft picks that we could use. We’re going to keep an open roster spot. 

“So as we have injuries or the needs really arise where Coach Nurse sees something we need to do, we’ll address those. And we feel like this is going to be a special season.”