Paul George will play an enormous part in determining how high this Philadelphia 76ers team can fly. If he stays on the court and looks like the dominant, shot-creating, six-time All-NBA selection he is (or something even close to that) the Sixers' outlook is drastically altered. At media day, George gave fans reason to hope that when he is on the court, he's willing to man the power forward position, something he was staunchly against early in his career:
"If you asked me about this ten years ago, I wouldn't have been a fan of it... But, today's game, there's not, you know, real fours like there used to be... And at this point in my career, you know, let the young guys go out and play the wing positions...We got great defenders... KO, VJ, Quentin... I know where I'm at in my career. I can adjust and play at the four spot, give extra ball-handling on the floor, better spacing... I'm very comfortable playing at the four spot this year... Being kind of a point-forward kind of style..."
That's great to hear. George's first season in Philly was obviously frustrating; he missed half of the season and played some of his worst basketball when was active. So, while quotes from media day can often age poorly, it's nice to hear that George is mature enough at this stage of his career to adapt to a roster that makes way more sense with him in the frontcourt.
Paul George as a point-forward opens up many lineup possibilities
George specifically mentioning VJ Edgecombe as a guy to fill into that position on the wing is noteworthy. With George bringing real offensive creation to the power forward spot, it allows head coach Nick Nurse to experiment a bit with the other positions. VJ Edgecombe won't be an elite offensive creator early in his career, but the ball won't need to be in his hands that much with George acting as an offensive hub from the "point-forward" position. His presence there can compensate for many things.
With such a guard-heavy roster, the Sixers will have to roll out some undersized lineups. Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Quentin Grimes (eventually), and Jared McCain (when he returns from injury) will all play consistent minutes. Hence, George being willing to spend most of his time at the four should save Nurse from a few rotational headaches.
Of course, George is still sidelined right now as he's recovering from offseason knee surgery, so fans might have to wait a bit to see this scenario play out on-court. That's always the case, right? Something sounds good, but then never materializes?
Oh, well. It's media day — this season hasn't broken me yet. I choose to hope in the face of it all.