March 23, 2026
PHILADELPHIA – As the Sixers' loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder went final on Monday night, there was a silver lining: Paul George's 25-game suspension, announced in January due to a violation of the NBA's anti-drug policy, is over with.
The nine-time All-Star will return to action for the Sixers when they host the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night, and earlier this month Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said that George would not have any restrictions or limitations upon returning. Nurse reaffirmed that statement before Monday's game, commending George's work over the last several weeks and saying he and George were both uninterested in needing any sort of ramping up for his workload.
George's absence has been brutally timed for the Sixers, whose injuries have piled up over the last several weeks. Yet they managed to win more games than they lost during the life of George's suspension, going 13-12. George, who has not played in both legs of any back-to-backs this season, logged 30.5 minutes per game across 27 appearances.
MORE: Jared McCain's full comments after returning to Philadelphia
