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Sixers Rule Out Paul George For Rest Of Season

March 17th, 2025 at 5:24pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Sixers have declared that Paul George will miss the remainder of the season due to adductor and knee injuries, officially announcing the decision on Monday (via Twitter).

“George has received injections in both his left adductor muscle and left knee,” the team said in its statement. “Following the procedure, George is medically unable to play and will be out for at least six weeks.”

It’s a fitting conclusion to a lost season for both George, last summer’s top free agent, and the Sixers. The 34-year-old was limited to 41 starts this season due to his injuries. When he did play, it wasn’t up to his usual standards. He averaged 16.2 points per game in 2024/25 after having averaged at least 21.5 PPG in each season since 2015/16. He also put up 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.5 minutes per night.

George’s last appearance came on March 4, when he scored just seven points in 30 minutes against Minnesota.

George was Philadelphia’s top target as it hoarded salary-cap space prior to last offseason. He signed a four-year max contract worth approximately $211.6MM in July. He’s due to make $51,666,090 next season and $54,126,380 in 2026/27. He holds a $56,586,670 option for the final year of his contract when he’ll be 37.

The Sixers can only hope that George stays on the court for longer stretches in the next few seasons and the contract doesn’t become an albatross. He was supposed to be the final piece of a championship puzzle, giving the team a high-level wing to join dominant center Joel Embiid and star guard Tyrese Maxey.

Embiid’s lingering knee issues limited him to 19 games before he was ruled out for the rest of the season late last month.

Sixers Notes: Hood-Schifino, Reed, Bona, George, Embiid

March 17th, 2025 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Considering their lottery situation, the Sixers really didn’t need a win Sunday afternoon in Dallas, but that didn’t matter to Jalen Hood-Schifino or the other players trying to prove themselves at the NBA level, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Hood-Schifino, who signed a two-way contract on March 1, came off the bench to sink five three-pointers and score 19 points in 23 minutes. He also hit a pair of foul shots with four seconds left that put the game out of reach.

“For me, just focusing on my breath and saying calm, and knowing if I get those two free throws, the game is over,” Hood-Schifino said. “So for me, it was about relaxing and knocking those shots down.”

Pompey notes that while the Sixers snapped a three-game losing streak and won for just the fourth time in 21 games, it wasn’t the best outcome for a team that will surrender its first-round pick to Oklahoma City if it falls outside the top six. Brooklyn also won on Sunday while Toronto lost, leaving Philadelphia with the sixth-worst record in the league, a half-game behind the Nets in the lottery standings and a half-game ahead of the Raptors.

“Listen, we are going to prepare this group to go out there and have some success,” coach Nick Nurse said. “Again, they played very well tonight. … Again, we just want to prepare them well and give them a chance to show what they can do and have some success.”

There’s more on the Sixers:

Pistons center Paul Reed, who was waived by Philadelphia in July, took a shot at his former team on social media Saturday night, posting, “They thought I was the problem,” Pompey adds. Asked to comment on Sunday, Nurse replied, “I don’t have a response. We certainly didn’t think Paul Reed was a problem.”
The Sixers’ list of inactive players for Sunday grew to 10 when center Adem Bona was declared out due to a sprained left ankle, Pompey tweets. There’s no word on how much time Bona is expected to miss.
The Sixers were counting on Paul George to lift them into title contention when he signed as a free agent last summer, but their best move might be to try to unload his hefty contract during the offseason, Pompey states in a separate story. The nine-time All-Star has been limited to 41 games this season and hasn’t played since March 4 because of groin and knee injuries. He’ll turn 35 in May and still has three years and $162.3MM left on his contract.
The Sixers won’t be able to make real progress until they move on from Joel Embiid, Pompey argues in another piece. He notes that Philadelphia’s front office keeps making personnel moves to build around Embiid, but the star center’s constant injuries prevent them from being effective. Pompey adds that with Embiid, George and Tyrese Maxey using up virtually all the team’s cap space over the next several seasons, there’s little room to improve if they all remain on the roster.

Sixers Sign Chuma Okeke To Second 10-Day Contract

March 16th, 2025 at 10:32am CST by Arthur Hill

March 16: Okeke’s second 10-day contract with Philadelphia is now official, per the team.

March 15: Chuma Okeke, who played one game for the Sixers on a 10-day contract last month, will return to the team on another 10-day deal, sources tell NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link). Stein adds that Okeke will be available for Sunday afternoon’s game at Dallas.

The 26-year-old combo forward inked his first 10-day contract on February 7, but was waived after just six days when the team promoted two-way player Jared Butler to the 15-man roster. Okeke saw two minutes of action in his only appearance, finishing with no points and one rebound.

Apart from his brief NBA appearance, Okeke has spent the season with the Knicks’ G League affiliate in Westchester, averaging 18.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 25 regular season games.

Okeke was mentioned as a potential addition for New York when the team became financially eligible to add a 15th player in late February. New York opted to sign P.J. Tucker to a 10-day deal instead.

The Sixers have a full roster, but they are able to make additions through 10-day deals under the hardship exception because they have several players who have missed at least three consecutive games and are expected to remain sidelined for at least two more weeks.

Free agent forward Oshae Brissett signed a 10-day hardship contract with the team on Friday. Assuming the Sixers don’t plan to release Brissett in order to sign Okeke, they’ll need to have at least five players who meet the hardship criteria in order to make a second 10-day signing. Joel Embiid, Eric Gordon, Jared McCain, Paul George, and Kyle Lowry may all fit the bill.

If Okeke’s deal becomes official on Sunday, he will be eligible to appear in six games before it expires on March 25. Players are limited to two 10-day contracts per team in a season, so the Sixers would have to give him a standard deal to keep him any longer.

Bontemps/Windhorst’s Latest: Nets, Sixers, Zion, Wizards, Raptors

March 14th, 2025 at 11:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets project to have significantly more cap room than any other NBA team this offseason — they’re in position to open up more than $60MM in space. However, they’re unlikely to take the same approach as last year’s top cap-room team, Philadelphia, which spent big on win-now free agents.

As Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes in an Insider-only article, the Nets signaled when they reacquired control of both their 2025 and 2026 first-round picks that they might require at least a two-year rebuild. Some rival teams believe Brooklyn will end up rolling much of its 2025 cap room over to the 2026 offseason, according to Windhorst.

“They’re going to use it in trade because they’re not going to have anyone to pay in this free agent market,” one executive said of the Nets’ cap space. “They could end up right back in this spot next year.”

Here are a few more items of interest from Windhorst and his ESPN colleague Tim Bontemps:

While the hope in Philadelphia is that better health luck next season will result in a bounce-back year for the Sixers, there’s still no update on what the treatment plan for Joel Embiid is and no assurances that he’ll be back to 100% in 2025/26, as Windhorst and Bontemps note. “Until they know what is happening with Embiid, there is no way to project what they will be next year,” a league executive told ESPN. “They will have a hard time changing that roster.”
The Pelicans are just 9-19 in games that Zion Williamson has played this season and project to have an expensive roster next season, so even though Williamson has been healthy and performed well as of late, rivals continue to wonder if he’ll end up on the trade block, Windhorst writes. “The question about the Pelicans is whether they would consider trading Zion,” a rival general manager told ESPN. “It hasn’t really been an option over the last couple of years because he’s been injured, and his value hasn’t been high enough. Even now, I don’t think they could get great value. So they will probably see if he can carry this play over into next year.”
Multiple executives who spoke to Bontemps lauded the Wizards for their work at the trade deadline, including bringing in veterans like Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart while taking a flier on 2024 first-rounder AJ Johnson. “I like what they are doing,” an executive said. “They’re doing things the right way.” Conversely, there’s some skepticism around the league about the way in which the Raptors – who traded a first-round pick as part of a package for Brandon Ingram – are attempting to accelerate their rebuild, says Bontemps. “I don’t like what Toronto is doing,” one exec told ESPN. “Trying to flip it quick is dangerous.”

NBA Looking At Thunder, Sixers For Possible Player Participation Policy Violations

March 14th, 2025 at 9:42pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA is investigating the Thunder and the Sixers for possible violations of the league’s player participation policy, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN.

According to Charania, the NBA is looking specifically at the Thunder’s March 7 game vs. Portland, in which the team sat its entire starting five: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (rest), Chet Holmgren (lower leg contusion), Jalen Williams (wrist sprain), Luguentz Dort (patellofemoral soreness), and Isaiah Hartenstein (nasal fracture re-injury). Cason Wallace (right knee contusion) also missed the game, which wasn’t part of a back-to-back set.

While Holmgren sat out Oklahoma City’s March 5 contest too, the other five players who missed the Portland game were available on both March 5 and March 9.

Gilgeous-Alexander is the only Thunder player who meets the “star” criteria as defined by the player participation policy, but there’s a precedent for teams being penalized for sitting several “non-star” starters in the same game — the Nets were hit with a $100K fine last season for making a similar move.

Still, Rylan Stiles of SI.com (Twitter link) and Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link) are among the reporters to question the necessity of investigating the Thunder for their approach to the Portland game, given that they’ve had a strenuous post-All-Star schedule and still won the game by 18 points. Marks suggests that the league should be focused more on lottery-bound teams who may be flaunting the policy in an effort to improve their draft odds.

The Jazz, one such lottery-bound team, were fined $100K two days ago for a player participation policy. The Sixers, who have also seemingly pivoted to prioritizing lottery position in recent weeks, ruled out 11 players for Friday’s game vs. Indiana.

According to Charania, the league is looking at the Sixers due to the recent absences of Paul George (knee/back/finger) and Tyrese Maxey (back/finger). George has missed the past five games, while Maxey has been out for the past six, though head coach Nick Nurse said after Friday’s loss that Maxey should return at some point during Philadelphia’s upcoming six-game road trip (Twitter link via Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports).

The league may determine that the absences of George, Maxey, and the rest of the inactive Sixers players are legitimate, but if the club is determined to have violated the player participation policy, it could face a fine of $250K. That’s the amount for a second violation, and the 76ers already received a $100K fine earlier this season.

Eastern Notes: Bridges, Thibs, Robinson, Grimes, Mann, Bradley

March 14th, 2025 at 5:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau met with forward Mikal Bridges prior to Wednesday’s victory over Portland to clear the air over their recent public comments about the starters’ minutes, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who says sources described the meeting as “productive.” Mike Breen of MSG Network first stated on Wednesday’s broadcast that the two men had talked before the game.

Bridges said on Wednesday that he felt like the Knicks’ reserves should play a little more to help reduce the starters’ workloads. The 28-year-old suggested that he had spoken to Thibodeau about the subject, but the veteran coach later denied having that conversation and defended his minutes distribution.

As Stefan Bondy of The New York Post writes, the minor off-court drama hasn’t impacted Bridges’ play on the court. In three games since Jalen Brunson went down with an ankle sprain, Bridges has averaged 23.3 points per game on 62.8% shooting, including 33 points on 13-of-21 shooting in Wednesday’s overtime win.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson is still on a minutes restriction after returning from ankle surgery two weeks ago, but the big man dropped some weight during his recovery process and is pleased with how his leaner physique has aided his mobility on the court, Bondy writes in a subscriber-only New York Post story. “I got to be honest, though. For me to come back from an ankle injury, I kind of move really well,” Robinson said. “Coming back from an ankle injury after 10 months? I move pretty damn good.”
Sixers guard Quentin Grimes spoke to Grant Afseth of Sportskeeda about his experience playing alongside Luka Doncic in Dallas, what it was like being traded last month, and why he’s “really happy” in Philadelphia even though the team has won just two of 15 games since the trade deadline. Grimes will miss Friday’s game vs. Indiana due to an illness, according to the latest injury report.
Hawks guard Terance Mann will face his former team on Friday for the first time since being traded last month, but he tells Law Murray of The Athletic that he hasn’t had a chance to reflect on the five-and-a-half years he spent with the Clippers. “I haven’t yet, no, I haven’t yet,” Mann said. “I’ll probably do that after the season. You know, just sit back, hang out with the guys, reflect. Hang out with Zu (Ivica Zubac), Amir (Coffey), James (Harden), Kawhi (Leonard), all those dudes. Talk and just reflect.” Mann added that his agent informed him before last month’s deal about the possibility that he’d be sent to Atlanta and he felt “great” about the opportunity. “They’re expecting a lot more from me,” Mann said. “They’re expecting me to shoot the ball off the dribble, catch and shoot, make plays when I get to the paint. Get to the paint. They just want me to be who I am. And I really appreciate Coach Q (Quin Snyder) for that.”
After Tony Bradley signed a second 10-day contract with the Pacers on Thursday, head coach Rick Carlisle told reporters, including Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files, that the big man is an “ideal” third center for the team right now. “In practices and in simulated stuff in the gym, he’s been terrific,” Carlisle said. “Smart, great hands, defensively has a really good feel for what we’re doing here.”

Oshae Brissett Signs 10-Day Contract With Sixers

March 14th, 2025 at 1:35pm CST by Arthur Hill

1:35 pm: The signing is official, the Sixers announced today in a press release.

11:07 am: The Sixers will sign Oshae Brissett to a 10-day contract, sources tell Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

The 26-year-old forward signed a G League deal in January and was claimed off waivers by the Long Island Nets. He averaged 12.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 11 regular season games with Brooklyn’s affiliate.

Brissett was part of Boston’s championship team last season, but he declined a $2.46MM player option last June in hopes of finding a larger role with another team. He only appeared in 55 games a year ago and was limited to 11.5 minutes per night.

Brissett began his career with Toronto in 2019, signing an Exhibit 10 contract after going undrafted out of Syracuse and earning a two-way deal in training camp. After being waived by the Raptors the following year, Brissett got a late-season opportunity with Indiana. He eventually became a rotation player for the Pacers before signing with the Celtics in free agency in 2023.

Philadelphia, which has fallen into 12th place in the East at 22-43, could offer significant playing to Brissett as long as he’s with the team. The Sixers have a full 15-man roster, but will be able to add Brissett through the hardship exception because they have four players who have missed at least three consecutive games and are expected to remain sidelined for at least two more weeks.

As a five-year veteran, Brissett will earn $139,391 during his 10-day deal. Assuming it become official in time for tonight’s meeting with Indiana, he’ll be eligible to appear in six games before it expires March 23. The Sixers will be permitted to offer him a second 10-day contract as long as they still fall qualify for a hardship exception.

Injury Notes: Davis, Lively, Gafford, JJJ, Sabonis, Lakers, Walker

March 13th, 2025 at 9:03pm CST by Tristan Tucker

There are no indications that the Mavericks are seriously considering shutting down Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II or Daniel Gafford for the rest of the season, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. If any or all of the three currently injured big men are able to return while the Mavericks are mathematically in the play-in/postseason hunt, they’ll play, says Townsend.

A recent report suggested that it might be in Dallas’ best interest to preserve those players for the long run due to Kyrie Irving‘s season-ending injury and the team’s unfavorable spot in the standings.

“We know how good we can be when everyone’s healthy,” guard Dante Exum said. “But that’s one of the big things about the NBA: timing. Timing is everything. Runs and staying healthy during the season and going into playoffs, that’s a big part, and it’s something that we’re gonna have to figure out, quick.”

Davis is dealing with an adductor strain and Lively is recovering from a stress fracture. Both players, as we wrote, are on track to make their returns before the end of the season, if that’s the path the organization and players agree to. Gafford is recovering from an MCL sprain. His original six-week recovery timeline would have him back toward the end of March or the beginning of April, but there’s a sense he might be a little further off.

We have more injury notes from around the league:

Jaren Jackson Jr. appears to be be nearing a return for the Grizzlies, as he was upgraded to questionable for Friday’s game against the Cavaliers, according to Damichael Cole of Memphis Commercial Appeal. The Grizzlies have gone 4-1 without Jackson, but his return will be a welcome one for a team with aspirations of competing for a title. Jackson has been considered week-to-week due to an ankle sprain.
Domantas Sabonis hasn’t suited up for the Kings since March 1, but he was upgraded to questionable ahead of the team’s Thursday game against the Warriors, according to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). Sabonis, who is dealing with a hamstring injury, was ruled out just before the game, tweets Anderson. But the fact that his injury status was upgraded at all is a signal that his return should be just around the corner.
Lakers center Jaxson Hayes and forward Rui Hachimura left the team’s road trip to return to L.A. alongside LeBron James for health reasons, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets. Both Hayes and Hachimura are battling knee injuries. They, along with James, are considered day-to-day, according to McMenamin. We previously wrote about James’ injury here.
Sixers guard Lonnie Walker IV was diagnosed with a concussion on Thursday morning, according to PHLY Sports’ Kyle Neubeck (Twitter link). Walker hit his head on the court on Wednesday against Toronto and entered the NBA’s concussion protocol. He’ll be evaluated daily moving forward.

Paul George Weighing Treatment Options For Injuries

March 13th, 2025 at 3:29pm CST by Rory Maher

Sixers forward Paul George is meeting with doctors this week to determine the best course of action to treat his groin and knee injuries, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, who reports that surgery is among the options being considered.

A decision on which path to take is expected to be made early next week, sources tell Charania.

While he hasn’t yet been formally ruled out for the remainder of 2024/25 like Joel Embiid was, Charania reports that “George is likely headed down the same route,” so he is unlikely to suit up again this season.

George, 34, has missed Philadelphia’s past four games with a left groin injury. During preseason, he hyperextended his left knee, causing him to miss the first five games of the season, then had a similar injury in November, which cost him three more games. He has also been battling tendon damage in his left pinky finger since January.

About a month ago, Charania reported that George had been receiving painkilling injections to deal with his various injuries, which the nine-time All-Star later confirmed.

George has been limited to 41 games this season due to the aforementioned injuries and hasn’t replicated his typical production when he has played, averaging just 16.2 points per contest, his lowest mark in a full season since ’11/12. His three-point percentage (.358) is also well below his career rate (.383).

George, who has made six All-NBA and four All-Defensive appearances in 15 seasons, signed a four-year, maximum-salary contract with the 76ers as a free agent last summer. Philadelphia entered the season with championship aspirations, but has consistently been at the bottom of the standings in ’24/25, starting out 2-12. After dropping 15 of their past 18 games, the Sixers are currently just 22-43.

The Sixers’ 2025 first-round pick will head to Oklahoma City if it drops outside the top six, but they’ll keep the selection if it lands within the protected range (Nos. 1-6). Philadelphia is currently tied with Brooklyn for the fifth-worst record in the NBA.

Atlantic Notes: Shamet, Nurse, Tatum, Fernandez

March 13th, 2025 at 9:32am CST by Dana Gauruder

Landry Shamet dislocated his shoulder during the preseason and could have opted for season-ending surgery. The Knicks guard instead chose to rehab the injury and so far, that decision is paying dividends, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post writes.

Shamet was waived in October, then re-signed with the club in December. The veteran guard is currently getting steady minutes due to injuries and scored a season-high 13 points against Sacramento on Monday.

“Yeah, knock on wood. I’m in a good spot,” Shamet said. “I attacked the rehab, took it very seriously. Frankly, that’s not much of a thought I have. I feel good, I’m in a good spot.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Sixers head coach Nick Nurse came to dread reports from his medical staff as the team’s once-promising season disintegrated, he told Michael Grange of Sportsnet. “It was really, really difficult at times,” Nurse said. “What made it most difficult is when you’d actually go on a run and think you’re making some progress, and then you get hit again (with another injury). I remember having one really good win, I can’t remember who it was against, and after the game — I always get a report from the medical team — and he came in and I was like, ‘Please just let me get to the next game, we just played really good.’ And he’s like, ‘Uh, I don’t know what to tell you.’ You kept thinking you were going to get these guys back… and guys kept going down.”
In the Celtics‘ six-point loss to the Thunder on Wednesday, Oklahoma City shot 35 free throws while the Celtics only had 12 attempts. “Yeah, it’s tough,” Jayson Tatum said Brian Robb of MassLive.com. “You’re not going to keep them off the line. They’re very intentional about that, and they have been all season. You’re not going to be the first team where they shoot five free throws or something crazy like that. But there is a balance between that and 35 free throws. Granted, some of them were fouls. Some of them we’ve got to be better at. But I’m not saying that’s why we lost or that’s the ref’s fault or anything like that. That’s how it’s going to be in the playoffs.”
Nets first-year head coach Jordi Fernandez is drawing high praise from opposing coaches as well as his current and former players. Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily.com examines why Fernandez has made such a strong impression.

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