Paul George’s injury woes deepen Sixers’ dilemma: how long will he be missing?

The nightmare goes on for Paul George and the Sixers: the forward has suffered yet another injury to his left knee during a summer workout and has already undergone surgery – an arthroscopy that will sideline him, once again,“indefinitely.” He is expected to be re-evaluated at the start of preseason, though things aren’t looking much brighter for Joel Embiid either. Not better, not worse – just as unclear.

The Cameroonian still isn’t training freely or normally after undergoing an arthroscopy in April to treat a left knee injury. Officially, the Sixers remain optimistic and believe he’ll be ready when the team gets back to work. But… when Embiid had surgery over three months ago, the timeline suggested a six-week check-up. Yet no official updates were ever released within that window.

What’s happening with Paul George?

George’s situation is even murkier. He’s been struggling with that same left knee since last preseason and has a long history of lower-body injuries. There’s little reason for optimism. According to Shams Charania (ESPN), the Sixers “will be cautious,” meaning his recovery could bleed into the regular season.

George arrived in Philadelphia last summer as the franchise’s marquee signing – one of the few genuine stars to change teams in recent free agency. He left the Clippers after they refused to offer a max contract, something the Sixers were happy to hand over: four years, $211.5 million. In the 2027–28 season, he has a $56.5 million player option. That same year, Embiid – now 31 – will be earning $64.3 million, with a player option of $69 million the following season, 2028–29. It’s obvious that the Sixers’ entire financial plan hinges on George and Embiid remaining close to their peak levels, something that feels increasingly unlikely given their constant health issues. Last season, Embiid played just 19 games; George, 41. And George’s production dropped to 16.2 points per game – his worst in over a decade. He has only played more than 60 games once in the past six seasons.

Add in Tyrese Maxey (24), the team’s young star who signed a five-year, $203 million deal last summer, and the supposed “big three” only managed 15 games together, totaling 294 minutes. Worse still, their record in those games was negative: seven wins and eight losses. The team ultimately leaned hard into a tanking strategy to protect their draft pick, which would have gone to Oklahoma City if it had fallen outside the top six. That gamble paid off – they landed the No 3 pick and selected Bahamian shooting guard VJ Edgecombe (19), a potential star. With Jared McCain (21, No 16 pick in the 2024 draft) returning from injury – a guard who was making a strong case for Rookie of the Year before going down – and once the situation is resolved with Quentin Grimes (25), a restricted free agent still in a tense cold war with the franchise over his new contract, the Sixers will find themselves in an unusual position.

On one hand, they’ll have one of the most promising young guard rotations in the league – Maxey, Grimes, McCain and Edgecombe. On the other, they face an urgent need to win now, assuming George and Embiid can stay healthy. It’s a strange mix of past and future, with big questions about how the present fits in.

Yabusele departs

The Sixers also don’t have a clear starter at power forward – especially if George isn’t healthy enough to open the season and log minutes there. Kelly Oubre Jr and new arrival Trendon Watford are both in the mix, but seem better suited for rotation roles. Guerschon Yabusele is no longer in the picture, having signed with the Knicks after receiving an offer that clashed with Philadelphia’s priorities. Their main goal: securing Grimes.

Team executive Daryl Morey addressed the situation in Las Vegas, where the Summer League is underway: “Yeah, losing Yabusele sucked. We had several restricted free agency situations to manage, and the way things were structured limited what we could offer. We gave him the most we could without jeopardizing our ability to keep Grimes. It was more than the veteran minimum. I’ve seen reports saying it was the minimum – that’s just false. But yes, it was less than what he ended up signing for. We wanted to keep Grimes, that’s our priority and we’re working with his agent on that. And of course, that impacted what we could offer Guerschon.”

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