76ers' George says mental health led to PED use

CAMDEN, N.J. — Paul George declined to get into the specifics of the failed drug test that landed him a 25-game suspension but says he is mentally and physically ready to help the Philadelphia 76ers with their playoff push over the last 10 games of the season.

George will play for the Sixers on Wednesday night against the Chicago Bulls.

The Sixers — who also played the past 13 games without an injured Joel Embiid — went 13-12 in George’s absence and entered Tuesday night’s games at 39-33 and in seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings.

George was suspended in late January for violating the terms of the NBA’s anti-drug program.

He opened his statement Tuesday at the 76ers’ complex in New Jersey with an apology to the team, its fans and his family for the poor judgment that led to his flunked test.

“To let people down hurt more than kind of anything,” George said.

He said his choice to take a banned substance was connected to a mental health issue that developed because of an offseason knee injury that limited his production this season.

“The most difficult thing is when your body isn’t where you know it needs to be or where it once was,” George said. “That leads and bleeds into the mental side of things, knowing that you’re limited. But for me, I feel good, my body is feeling great. Mentally, I know I’m capable of doing what I can do and what I’ve been able to on the court for years.”

George has averaged 16 points in 27 games this season for the Sixers. He had one of his best games of the season in the week he was suspended, a 32-point outburst fueled by nine 3-pointers in a win over Milwaukee.

George, 35, signed a $212 million, four-year contract in free agency ahead of the 2024 season. But his first year in Philly was marred by knee and adductor injuries that resulted in the forward having one of the worst years of his NBA career.

George averaged 16.2 points in just 41 games, easily his lowest scoring average in a full season since he averaged 12.1 points for Indiana in his second NBA season.

He then had surgery in July on his left knee after he was injured during a workout, and he missed the first 12 games of this season.

“Being a pro athlete takes a toll on you,” George said. “My body wasn’t where I wanted it to be. The expectations to perform because of my body not being where it needed to be, obviously, I’m going to have an expectation for myself. That’s what led to a poor decision at the time.”

George said the hiatus gave time for his body to heal from nagging injuries, healing that in turn has improved his state of mind.

“These 25 games were just what I needed, I think, for my body,” he said.

The suspension cost George — a nine-time All-Star — roughly $11.7 million of his $51.7 million salary, or about $469,692 for each of the 25 games missed.

“I’ve said it throughout my career, dealing with mental health, I’m no superhero,” George said. “I’m human, and I made a mistake in that moment.”

Embiid, the 2023 MVP, has missed the past 13 games with a right oblique strain, and All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey has missed nine straight games with a right finger tendon strain.

There was no immediate timetable on their returns.

George said he’s ready to fill the scoring void and lift the Sixers out of the play-in bubble and securely into the playoffs.

“I’ve been feeling great, feeling explosive again, feeling strong again,” he said. “I feel like I’m back on that level of being able to perform and be the focal guy and be the scorer.”