George is coming back? But is it possible that the 76ers no longer need him and didn t send him away just because no one wanted him...

Translator's Note: This article was originally published by CBS, and the author is John Gonzalez. The data in the article are as of the time of publication of the original article (November 13, local time). The opinions in the article have nothing to do with the translator and the platform.

Sometimes you make a plan, everything goes according to plan, and everyone involved seems wise afterwards. But this rarely happens with the 76ers. Over the years, no matter how many general managers and head coaches there are, the team's development tends to go off track.

Paul George, signed as a free agent last offseason, obviously falls into the latter situation. In his final season with the Clippers, George hit career highs in field goal percentage and three-point percentage. He also played in 74 games, the most in the past five seasons. The 76ers couldn't wait to give him a four-year, $212 million maximum salary contract, while the Clippers watched him leave for nothing. One of these two teams is quite satisfied with their decision, the other is the 76ers.

George's first season in Philadelphia was a complete disaster. He only played 41 games, the fewest in the past three seasons, and his scoring average, field goal percentage, and three-point shooting percentage all dropped significantly.

To be fair, when the 76ers signed George, it seemed like the right move at the time. George is a nine-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA selection and four-time All-Defensive team selection. He's long enough to both stretch the floor and guard players in almost every position, and he doesn't need to be the go-to guy to contribute. In theory, pairing him with Maxey and Embiid makes sense. But this paper idea soon came to nothing - three people were absent due to various reasons during the season. In the end, the 76ers only achieved 24 wins, setting their worst record in nine years.

After undergoing knee surgery this summer, George has yet to play for the 76ers this season. But that may soon change. He has participated in training with the team, and on Tuesday, the 76ers announced that he has entered the "final stages of returning to the game" and will be re-evaluated this week.

George's season debut seems to be around the corner. Having such a high-level player return to the team should be something the 76ers should celebrate, but is that really the case?

Before the start of this season, the outside world's expectations for the 76ers were extremely low, and almost no one even had any expectations for them. However, despite George's absence and Embiid's playing time restrictions (not to mention being unable to participate in back-to-back games and suffering from another knee injury and inconsistent status), the 76ers still got off to a good start with 7 wins and 4 losses. The team has a young and dynamic group of guards and wings, led by Maxey - who is off to a hot start this season and ranks third in the league in points per game. After deliberately failing at the end of last season, the 76ers selected VJ Edgecombe with the third pick, and he quickly entered the competition for the best rookie. You must know that everyone thought that Cooper Flagg would win this award without any suspense. Grimes and Oubre are the team's top four scorers, and they have played a key role in the Sixers' competition in nearly every game (three of Philadelphia's four losses have been separated by just six points).

The 76ers now launch an offense with Maxi as the core, surrounded by a group of players with excellent athletic ability and hard work. Their offensive efficiency ranks fifth in the league. In addition to the data, the team's atmosphere is also harmonious for a long time, and the game is full of fun to watch. So, how will George fit into all of this when he returns? What impact will his return have on a system that has been operating stably without him?

When he originally signed with the 76ers, George said that part of the attraction was to work with "one of the best young point guards in the league and one of the top (if not the top) inside players in the league. Let's see what effect this combination can have."

But the actual effect was not satisfactory. Last season, the three played 294 minutes together, with a net rating of only +2, and the team achieved a record of 7 wins and 8 losses in these games. This is obviously not enough to make people optimistic, but the style of play last season is very different from the 76ers' thinking this season.

Now Maxi is the core of the team. Embiid only played 6 games this season, averaging 23.3 minutes per game, contributing 19.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 blocks. These numbers are a far cry from the flashy performance he had when he won the MVP a few years ago. Now, anything he can bring to the team feels like a bonus, and teams have mostly resisted the urge to use him as a focal point or in clutch situations because he's Joel Embiid. But one time they failed to resist this old obsession, the results were disastrous. In early November, the 76ers led by 24 points on the road against the Bulls before they reintroduced Embiid late in the game, with disastrous consequences. Embiid took three ill-advised shots in the fourth quarter, including an ugly three-pointer, and had a plus-minus of -13 in 12 minutes. The 76ers ultimately lost the game by two points.

This shows that when the 76ers no longer force Embiid to become the core, but accept his contribution naturally, the team performs better. The team should do the same thing with George back, but there's going to be some doubt as to whether they can actually do that.

One of the major weaknesses of this 76ers team is a lack of length, especially in the frontcourt. The team rotated multiple players into power forward, but there were some positive signs. Last week against the Raptors, the 25-year-old Watford made his first start for the 76ers and scored his first career triple-double to help the team win. Despite mediocre performances in subsequent games against the Pistons and Celtics, Watford fits the team's current tone of youth and potential.. George's return will likely push Watford back to the bench and compete with other players for backup power forward minutes.

George's playing time and his participation in the offense deserve attention. He will turn 36 in May and is obviously not on the same development timeline as the young rookies mentioned above. In theory, his length, defensive ability and outside shooting should improve the team. If the 76ers use him as a role player instead of a core, it may have good results. But the concern is that his return could tempt teams to artificially increase his usage rate to justify that sky-high contract.

In addition to being older, George's contract is also quite expensive. Combined with his injury history and lackluster performance last season, his contract ranks as one of the worst in the league.

George's contract has a player option, and he will receive a salary of US$56.5 million in the 2027-28 season. This basically makes him not for sale.

This serious imbalance between input and output is enough to drive 76ers fans crazy in normal times, but almost no one cares about it this season. This makes sense because the team can win some games and the games are fun to watch. But if the team relies too much on George after his return, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among fans. The best way is to let him integrate into the team slowly and smoothly and see how things go. Maybe he could also take Draymond Green’s advice and restart his own podcast to pass the time — after all, everyone needs a hobby.