After what seemed like a lifetime of rumors, will he, won’t he debates regarding an extension with the Los Angeles Clippers, and numerous reports of various teams showing interest in him, Paul George reportedly found his new NBA home on July 1: the Philadelphia 76ers.
While many Sixers fans were likely asleep, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski dropped the bombshell at 3 a.m. ET that George, a nine-time All-Star and six-time All-NBA selection, had agreed to a four-year, $212 million maximum contract with Philadelphia.
On Saturday, the agreement was made official, with the team officially announcing Signature.
Now we have the inside scoop on why he ultimately chose the Sixers, his take on his new team, his message to Philly fans and more thanks to the latest episode of his podcast, “Podcast P with Paul George.” The full episode is available below.
Here are some highlights from the episode.
First meeting with the Sixers
“I had this meeting with Philly on Sunday night (June 30). David Blitzer came in, Josh Harris, Elton Brand, Dr. J — man, I had Dr. J in my crib, it’s crazy — big shoutout to Peter Dinwiddie, Daryl Morey. Most of Philly’s management was there at home and you know it was a great meeting and a great discussion about the organization. I’m not saying the Clippers didn’t do it or won’t do it, but just an organization that was like, ‘Man, you’re our guy. We believe in you, we want you here, there’s no (more) perfect pairing with you, Joel, Tyrese together.’”
“I felt it and I thought, ‘Okay, this is where I’m going to spend the next chapter of my life.’”
“They sold the city, they sold the team, the organization, the cohesion and it was like an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”
State of mind before this first meeting with the Sixers
“It was just the idea of playing with such a presence in Joel and then just a fresh start, a fresh opportunity. I was pretty open to the conversation and the decision. I think, you know, things were kind of stalled with the Clippers, which opened me up to looking at other teams, listening to other programs, and ultimately it was more just the idea of having one of the best young point guards in the league and… one of the best, if not the best, big in the league in Joel.”
“It was just kind of like, you know, let’s see what this looks like.”
Meeting with Dr. J at this meeting
“Dr. J had a great introduction and a great story, didn’t he?
So he talked about how he joined the team, how they ended up making it to the championship. They lost one. They made it again. They lost. They made it again, but they lost. And then he said, “You know, we can’t seem to get over the hump.” And then they traded for Moses Malone and they won. He said, “That was the missing piece.”
He said to me, “P, you are the missing piece.”
George concluded the story by saying, “You know where I sign, man?” and waving a piece of paper.
Talking about his new Sixers teammates
Tyrese Maxey
“I talked to Tyrese and Tyrese, man, one of the most mature kids in the league, one of the most mature kids for his age. He said, ‘I learned so much when the big guy (Embiid) went down. I was under a lot of pressure, but I got to see different defenses and learn and grow.’ I said, ‘Anything I can do to help you get better, that’s what I’m here for.’ He’s a star. We all know he’s a star. He’s got the ability of a No. 1 option and you need that freshness, that quickness that he has.”
Joel Embiid
“It’s simple, I’m going to space the floor for you, I’m going to do this or that, like there’s so many ways to play against each other. Like I said, I’ve never played with someone that big and dominant like that, you know, he’s the best or one of the best centers in the league, man. He’s a beast, you know, baby Shaq. Again, it’s a dream come true to have a star point guard and a big star player, you know, it’s a crazy dynamic.”
Kelly Oubre Jr.
“I love his competitive spirit. I love his tenacity. I can’t wait to play with him. Honestly, I can’t wait to get on the field, be on the wing with him. I think I can help him grow, teach him things. I think he’s super talented. You always feel like you’re in the mix when you play, but you know, he’s one of those guys that I can’t wait to go up against. I can’t wait to play with KO.”
Nick Nurse
“The game where (Kelly Oubre) and Nick Nurse got after the refs was the game that we (the Clippers) played them. I always thought of Nurse as a fiery, competitive coach, like you could see he was fiery on the other side, but I never had any interactions with him. But seeing that moment, I thought, this is who you have to play for. He was motivated, he was emotional. You know, it was important and he cared.”
Why he believes the Sixers can contend for the title
“Nick Nurse is as good as a coach you can get, you know, he’s won at a lot of different levels. I’ve talked about how good Joel is and Tyrese is and now you’re mixing me up, Oubre… I think we’ve got a hell of a starting five and then we’ve got some veterans coming off the bench, so we’ve got a recipe to be a really good team already.
I think everybody wants to win. I think we have a good mix of veterans and young players. I think Jared McCain is going to help us, he’s a really good player coming out of college. So it’s a good mix of all that.
Choosing 8 as Philadelphia’s jersey number
Known as PG-13, George could The number 13 was expected to be worn again when he arrived in Philadelphia. The only problem was that the Sixers retired the number on March 18, 1991, for one Wilt Chamberlain.
Another option could have been 24, which George wore during his first four NBA seasons for the Indiana Pacers. No, sorry, that won’t work either. The Sixers retired 24 in 1986 in honor of defensive great Bobby Jones.
George has since revealed he will wear the number 8 jersey for Philadelphia.
“I had to do it. I’m in Philadelphia. My idol, Kobe Bryant. It’s my way of idolizing Kobe and something that has a meaning other than 24 and 13, so it was a natural fit. I like the eight, the eight suits me.”
“I went through all the numbers to figure out what made sense, what felt right, what would be right for me. I chose 14 because my son can’t say 13, so he says 14, but I don’t know. That number didn’t feel right.”
“So I went down, I wore a 25 a little bit in high school but I didn’t like it so I was like, ‘No, I’m not going to wear that anymore.’ I think I also wore a 31 my freshman year in high school but 31 didn’t fit me. So I kept going down the scale.”
“For me, it’s just nice to have those moments where I look at that jersey and I’m like, ‘yeah, that’s why I’m wearing it,’ so I wanted that moment where I could just hold myself accountable.”
Leaving California, his home state
George has deep roots in California. He was born and played high school basketball in Palmdale before deciding to stay close to home for college at Fresno State. George returned to California in 2019 when he joined the Los Angeles Clippers. His decision to opt out of his player option with the Clippers meant not only leaving his team, but also leaving his home.
“That’s why it was the hardest decision because I have to move my kids and my wife. They’re comfortable here (in California). My girls are already sad that they missed out and left their friends that they grew up with for the last five years. So it was kind of like, I’m not gonna lie, this is probably the most stressful time I’ve been through in a long time because I’ve never been in free agency. This is the first time. Every time, I’ve given up free agency and re-signed, so this was the first time I was officially a free agent, so it was stressful, I’m not gonna lie. Especially being home, I think if I was somewhere else it would have been a little different, like, ‘Yeah, I don’t really have any ties here, I can leave,’ but man, this is the cradle, like, ‘Do I really want to leave LA?’”
The Philadelphia Fan Base
“They can be rowdy. You know, I’ve heard stories of players picking on them and stuff like that, but it’s a good pressure. It’s a pressure that you want. You know, Indy was kind of like that, but it made you want to play better and be better. I guess people would be scared of that, but it was kind of reassuring to know that they care about us and they want to win and I want to win.”
Discover Philadelphia as a City
“I can’t really say that it feels like home or that I’ve felt like home because I haven’t been there yet. As far as I know, Philly is just the hotels and stuff that I’ve been in when we’ve played there, so I’ve never really been to the city of Philly. So I’m looking forward to doing that, walking around the city, going to restaurants, feeling the Philly vibe.
“So I’m looking forward to getting there and saying, ‘Well, yeah, this is where we’re comfortable, this is where we’re going to spend the next four years at least.'”
His message to Sixers fans
“I want to be there. You’re going to have to give 100 percent of my effort. I can’t wait to be in front of that crowd.”
You know what was interesting, Aaron (Mintz, George’s agent) told me this, he said, ‘You know Philly is one of those places where historically the fans are all for their team. You’ve never played for something of this magnitude.’ So I’m looking forward to it, I’m looking forward to taking it on and playing for y’all, working as hard as I can, bringing that two-way player. And just winning. Like I’m trying to win. I haven’t won yet, I can’t say I’m a champion yet. I want to be able to crown myself a champion so I’m going to work my ass off. I’m going to push the big guy (Embiid), I’m going to push Tyrese to be better and try to build something, man. Build a championship team.”