The Philadelphia 76ers told reporters at practice on Friday that Paul George would be meeting with doctors over this upcoming weekend to assess his recovery and that the next steps for the forward would be determined
from there. George has been sidelined to start the 2025-26 season after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee back in July to treat an injury suffered during a workout in the offseason.
Now, this post in itself caused a bit of panic online. Fairly enough, I should add, as the “next steps will be determined from there” initially made it sound like there was maybe shift away from plans towards a return in the very near future. George had returned 5-on-5 at practice back on Oct. 16 and has been a full participant in practices since, so many fans were taken aback by the idea of the next steps still needing to be determined for him.
But rest assured, this is a medical team that George has been working closely with regularly throughout his rehab and recovery from the surgery. It’s nothing as new or developing as it initially sounded.
In fact, it sounds much more like a positive step rather than any indication of a bump in the road, as head coach Nick Nurse added that the meeting with his medical team this weekend was a “last hurdle” for George to clear towards making a return to play.
Last season, George played 41 games, averaging 16.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.5 minutes per game after signing a four-year deal worth over $211 million. From the outset, PG was dealing with injuries, beginning with a knee hyperextension suffered preseason. The rest of the season was interspersed with an array of injuries (for George and the rest of the Sixers’ roster, really) that made any level of consistency impossible.
The Sixers are 5-3 to begin the 2025-26 season without George. He will be out for at least this weekend’s back-to-back for Philadelphia, but we will keep you posted as more information on his eventual return becomes available.
Until then, feel encouraged that it seems things are still on track for PG in terms of his recovery. In fact, he’s even out on the court after practice beating Jared McCain in shooting competitions.
