When Paul George signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, he was supposed to be the missing piece that unlocked the team as a title contender in the East. Instead, his first year became one of the biggest disappointments, both for his personal performance and the team's struggles, in the entire NBA.
The Sixers went 24-58, with George only appearing in 41 games due to injuries and struggling to acclimate to his new surroundings, averaging just 16.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game on 54.3% true shooting. That represented his worst season since his second year in the league, and after being handed a max contract to slot in between Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid (whose on injury woes doomed the Sixers even if George was good), he was not exactly a beloved figure in Philadelphia.
Athletes in Philly never have to wonder what the fans think of them, as George can attest to as he got told directly by Sixers fans how frustrated they were with his play. George went viral in February after he got caught driving through the city in the immediate aftermath of the Eagles' Super Bowl win, getting stuck in a sea of Eagles fans, who recognized George and, as he explained on his podcast with Carmelo Anthony, yelled something at him that he had to "take to heart."
Paul George: "[Guy] said, 'We coulda kept Tobias!' [laughs] 'We coulda kept Tobias if you gonna do this shit.' Shoutout TB. Ain't no joke at TB, but it was some shit you take to the heart. Like you right. Facts. I got you."
Carmelo Anthony: "That right there will wake your ass up tho. You probably woke up like, yo, what the f---? I gotta be ready for this shit."
PG: "I got to the crib, found the closest basketball, like let me get right."
Melo: "For me that was the beauty of playing in a big city. I know they gonna keep me sharp no matter what. Like I gotta stay sharp. I have to."
George can say "no joke at Tobias" all he wants but it absolutely is a joke at Tobias' expense. Harris preceded George as the former-Clipper wing who was supposed to bridge the gap on the wing in Philly and struggled, becoming the regular punching bag of Sixers fans. George was supposed to be a huge upgrade over Harris, but their production was eerily similar -- Harris averaged 17.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists on 57.6% true shooting in his last year in Philly.
This interaction between George and Anthony found its way to Harris, who recently wrapped up his first season with the Detroit Pistons on a two-year, $52 million deal. The Pistons went from winning 14 games to 44 this year before losing a hard-fought series to the New York Knicks in the first round of the playoffs. Harris took notice of how poorly the Sixers played this year, including their miserable record (which was actually 4-24, not 4-27 as Harris claimed) that followed the Eagles' parade. George played in only six of those games, and the Sixers went 1-5.
As such, that Sixers fan who came across George in his car while celebrating the Eagles' triumph was, unequivocally, correct in his assessment. George and Anthony laughed about it, with Anthony explaining how he always loved the directness of fans in the big city (for him, New York), because they kept him sharp.
George may laugh about this right now in the offseason and proclaim that he took it to heart and plans to be better next year, but there is a ton of pressure on him and the rest of this Sixers team to bounce back in a major way in 2025-26. A big piece of that is Embiid's health, which is out of George's control, but he needs to produce like an All-Star again or he'll hear much worse from the Philly faithful next spring.
