Sixers Coach Nick Nurse On Paul George Injury: ‘Everything Checks Out OK’

The 76ers can breathe a sigh of relief, at least a little, after coach Nick Nurse provided an update on star forward Paul George, who suffered a hyperextended left knee in Monday’s preseason road win over the Hawks.

“PG was here today, got (the knee) looked at again,” Nurse told reporters at practice, via Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Everything checks out OK. They are gonna do some further imaging. He’s in good spirits, was here today. … But he’s OK for now, we’ll see what happens.”

The injury occurred in the second quarter, when George was defending Hawks forward Jalen Johnson. George’s leg bent awkwardly, forcing him to exit for good.

George did not seem too concerned immediately after the fact.

“I felt that it hyperextended, and immediately it was, all right, I need to get taken out and (looked at), but if you ask me, I’m not too concerned about it,” he told Pompey.

No matter, the Sixers were quick to rule him out. Understandably so, since the game was little more than a glorified scrimmage. Still, the Sixers were quick to rule him out for the rest of the night.

“Hopefully it’ll be OK, so he’s back with us right away,” Nurse said Monday. 

But hey, it never hurts to be overly careful. For the 76ers, that’s been the theme of the offseason. They’re already holding out Joel Embiid for the remainder of the preseason. Embiid seems to have peanut butter and jelly for knees, and now, George will be handled with the same cautiousness. 

Last season with the Clippers, George appeared in 74 games — the most since 2019. But in each of the four seasons prior to that, he played no more than 56. He signed a four-year deal with Philadelphia in July.

As for the regular season, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has already hinted that neither George nor Embiid will play many back-to-backs, if any. In other words, the Sixers are playing the long game, with their sights set on a championship. That means playing it safe until it really matters.

George missed the final nine games of the 2022-23 season with a hyperextended right knee.