The dream version of the Sixers ‘Big Three’ isn’t coming until Paul George and Joel Embiid mesh

The Sixers signed George, the nine-time All-Star to a four-year, $211.5 million to complement Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. However, George essentially has been a role player.

Tyrese Maxey (left), Joel Embiid, and Paul George, the Sixers' Big Three, have played just a few games together.Read moreMonica Herndon / Staff Photographer

by Keith Pompey

Published Feb. 9, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET

MILWAUKEE — Paul George’s dilemma has been the 76ers’ version of what is said to be the definition of insanity: “... doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

That is precisely what’s happening during the first season of the George experiment in Philadelphia.

The Sixers signed the nine-time All-Star to a four-year, $211.5 million contract to form a Big Three with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. However, George essentially has been a role player when competing alongside Embiid.

Following each lackluster offensive performance, the Sixers and George talk about the need to get him more involved, only to watch him revert back to not being a scoring factor.

On Friday, he finished with 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting — including making 2 of 3 three-pointers — in a 125-112 setback to the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena. However, the 6-foot-8 forward didn’t attempt his first shot until the 7-minute, 17-second mark of the first quarter, a frame in which he only took two shots. That led to George scoring just six points in the first half.

So, again, how can the Sixers get him more involved?

“Just we got to have better ball movement, better player movement, and be connected,” George said. “I think we just got to play a little harder. I got to try to get out and make plays for myself sometimes, too.”

For now, he’s averaging 14.1 points on 39.5% shooting — including making 27 of 86 three-pointers (31.4%) — along with 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists in his 14 games played with Embiid. In 18 games without the 2023 NBA MVP, George averaged 18.9 points on 45% shooting — including making 51 of 123 threes (41.5%) — to go with 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists.

His shooting percentages in those games are better than his career percentage from the field (44%) and from deep (38.4%).

“I feel like we haven’t found the synergy slash energy with that group,” coach Nick Nurse said regarding George playing alongside Embiid and Maxey. “Yet when it’s just him and Tyrese, there is more of a pop. That’s just on us needing some time. But it’s also just on our guys being in the right mindset. It’s going to be different. I don’t think you can let your energy drop. I think that’s what we struggled with.

“The big difference of that has really shown with overall energy and cohesiveness. And it shows up in the shooting numbers and transition numbers. It shows up in the rebounding numbers. Forget the shooting numbers.”

This is on George, his teammates, and the Sixers coaching staff to figure out how to correct it.

George has been hampered with a torn tendon in his left pinkie finger that sidelined him for five games before he returned in Wednesday’s loss to the Miami Heat. The 34-year-old kept touching his left hand during that contest and Friday’s matchup.

The finger injury and brace he’s wearing have been uncomfortable for the two games. He has to play with the same energy regardless of who’s on the floor if the Sixers (20-31) expect to turn their season around. It’s not like the team intends to play without Embiid for the remainder of the regular season, in the play-in tournament and what many hope is a deep postseason run.

With Embiid (left knee swelling) sidelined, the Sixers defeated the first-place Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 24 to snap a season-long seven-game losing streak. The next night, with Embiid out and George sitting out the second half, they beat the Chicago Bulls. The Sixers followed that up with victories over the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings without either player.

In the next two games, and still missing Embiid and George, the Sixers pushed the Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics to the brink, only to suffer heartbreaking losses. Those contests raised expectations for when the Big Three would be intact.

That moment came Friday, but the Sixers were thoroughly dominated by the Pistons, a .500 team.

“Before the game the other day, I said that the most disappointing thing to me is that we dug out of this to get to a level of play, in my opinion, [that was] pretty darn good,” Nurse said. “Energy, toughness, defense, deflections, turnovers; then all of a sudden, we take not a huge step back, but like six steps back. And we have to keep pointing that forward.”

Now, the Sixers will play the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday at Fiserv Forum (2 p.m.). They’ve lost two straight and four of their last five games. The Bucks (27-23) have a six-game winning streak over the Sixers.

“It will be a good challenge,” George said. “We played them well a couple [of] weeks back. But obviously, Milwaukee is a tough team to beat at their house, and they’re playing good. So it’s going to be another challenge.”

And for the Sixers, this would be a great game for George to snap out of his subpar performance while playing alongside Embiid.