Nick Nurse gives Celtics’ Paul George props for 36-point performance against the 76ers appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
It’s not for a lack of talent, or even a lack of fit that pushed the Philadelphia 76ers to trade away Paul George. Jaylen Brown became available, and with Brown coming off an All-NBA Second Team campaign in which he averaged 29/7/5, the 76ers pounced on the Boston Celtics’ desire to switch things up in a clear no-brainer way to upgrade the roster.
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But in the first matchup between the 76ers and Celtics in the 2026-27 season, it was the latter that stood tall. George, in particular, proved to be the biggest star in a game with many big names such as Brown, Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and LeBron James. He put up 36 points on 14-of-22 shooting from the field, and he popped off for a big fourth quarter to put the game to bed as the Celtics earned a 123-101 victory.
76ers head coach Nick Nurse knows what George is capable of, having coached him personally for two seasons, and he wasn’t very surprised to see him thrive with the Celtics.
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“First of all, give him credit. He’s pretty crafty at getting open. We’ve known that and seen that. But he was doing a lot of changes of direction, push-offs, those kinds of things, to get the ball into really good areas,” Nurse said of George, per Zach Ciavolella of Philly Sports Network.
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George scored 14 straight in the fourth quarter, and his entire offensive arsenal was in display. His crafty handle allowed him to get to his spots with ease, he has the strength to punish mismatches in the post, and his stroke from downtown remains as pure as ever.
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With the 76ers, George had to play more of a supporting role behind Maxey and Embiid, and his numbers fell as a result. He also had to contend with injury problems. However, he showed towards the end of last season, as well as in the playoffs, that he has plenty of gas left in the tank. Now, the Celtics are reaping the rewards of their faith in one of the best small forwards of his generation.
Related: Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla gets brutally honest about Jayson Tatum’s emotions vs. 76ers
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
