Philadelphia 76ers star Paul George made headlines recently for his decision to take a hiatus from “Podcast P with Paul George.” Following his announcement, the Sixers played against the New York Knicks on Wednesday and dealt with a 110-105 loss. Although they lost, the star forward recorded 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, his first 20-point game in February.
On Thursday, former NBA player Chandler Parsons had high praise for George and his choice to pause his podcast to focus on the remaining games of the 2024-25 season.
“You are just giving media, you are giving fans, you are giving them a built-in reason to be mad at you when you play bad,” Parsons said. “It’s the right move given how south this season’s gone for Philly.
Parsons defended George and said that the podcast didn’t serve as a distraction. The former Dallas Mavericks forward said the veteran forward’s podcast wasn’t the reason for his in-season struggles. Through 39 games, the six-time All-NBA has averaged 16.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
“Is this the reason why he’s playing bad? Is this the reason why he’s missing shots? Like, no chance.
“The outsiders have no clue what is a distraction and what isn’t.” – @ChandlerParsons
While it wasn’t his podcast’s fault, hopefully Paul George can get this season back on track for himself and the 76ers 🙏 pic.twitter.com/3Nr6Khe4Eg
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) February 28, 2025
“The outsiders have no clue what is a distraction, what they think is bad. But I think it’s smart, just optics-wise. This just looks bad. It looks like you were prioritizing a podcast over winning games for the Sixers.”
While the Sixers’ season isn’t entirely George’s fault, the barrage of content from his show became a hot topic among fans. With 24 games left, the star forward has not lost hope and wants to help the organization make the playoffs. The team is 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 20-38 record.
Additionally, the Sixers are on a nine-game losing streak.
Paul George is convinced the Sixers don’t have the habits of a championship team
When Paul George signed a four-year, $212 million deal to join the Sixers over the summer, one thing was in mind and that was to win a championship. However, things have not worked out well for George and the team as their in-season struggles started early in the campaign.
With their recent trend of losses, the nine-time All-Star revealed the honest truth about his new team and their chances of competing for a championship.
“We’ve shown no sign of a team that will compete,” said George. “We just don’t have the habits of a champion, or a playoff contending team, would have. To be honest, right now it’s a little far-fetched. All we can do is work hard and try to just keep going.”
While Philly doesn’t have the toughest schedule left, their early losses dug them a hole that’s been tough to get out of.
For other sports-related content:
Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignamuraonba@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
