"He has got injections to play" - NBA insider reveals Paul George's desperate efforts to play for 76ers amid worst slump of his career

The 2024-25 NBA season has not been an easy ride for Paul George and the Philadelphia 76ers. George has struggled to stay healthy after suffering a hyperextended left knee in a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks. Since then, the veteran forward hasn't been his usual self as he's dealt with various minor inconveniences.

ESPN's Shams Charania revealed on Thursday that George's injuries have affected his subpar production this season. In 35 games, the 6-foot-8 forward has averaged 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists on 42.6% shooting.

"It's really been an uphill battle for him since that point," Charania said. "He's had multiple different little nagging injuries that have come up. Most recently, he's had tendon damage in his left pinky that he's been fighting. He's been doing everything he can to be on the court to try to be available.

"It's to the point where he has gotten injections to play and compete over the last four or five games. That's something that players do come playoff time, not necessarily in the regular season."

Charania hinted that the Sixers would shut George down in the second half of the season. Over the past five games, the nine-time All-Star has averaged 10.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 39.6% from the floor.

This includes his Wednesday performance against the Brooklyn Nets where Philly suffered a 100-96 loss. George posted two points on 1-for-7 shooting.

The ESPN reporter talked about the future of the Sixers. Other stars have struggled to stay healthy, not just George. Charania said there could be "hard conversations" about availability.

With a 20-34 record, Philadelphia is ranked 11th in the Eastern Conference. Their stars' health isn't helping them, even if they still have a chance to qualify for the postseason in the Play-In Tournament.

Nick Nurse pointed out the Nets' defense as the reason behind Paul George's two-point performance

Offensively, Paul George didn't have the best performance on Wednesday. Additionally, he wasn't aggressive in scoring the basketball, given that the team didn't have Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid. The absences of his co-stars were also the reason why the Nets focused on stopping George from scoring.

After the game, coach Nick Nurse credited how Brooklyn defended the 34-year-old star.

"I think he had a couple of opportunities there, and again, they double-teamed him a lot," Nurse said. "They weren’t going to give him a ton of looks. I thought they pressured up the floor when he got in actions. Even off-ball stuff, they were sending two to him, so he didn’t really have much choice on a lot of them [but] to move the ball."

With the All-Star break starting early for the Sixers, George could use the time to tend to his body's needs. Their first game back from the break will be on Feb. 20 against the Boston Celtics.