Paul George’s first season with the Sixers was … not great.
He dealt with multiple injuries, beginning in the preseason, never really gelled with teammates when he was healthy, and struggled to his worst scoring average in more than a decade. He missed exactly half of his team’s games.
As you know, Philly sports fans aren’t world-famous for long patience with high-priced talent. You sign that kind of a contract, and you had better hit the ground running, or they will let you know about it.
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SIGN UP HERE George recounted a story describing an encounter with fans on the night the Eagles won the NFC Championship on Jan. 26 on his latest episode of Podcast P with Paul George. George was in his car trying to get back to his Center City condo when he found himself surrounded by thousands of celebrating Eagles fans. He tried to flag down a police officer to help get him back home, but what he heard back from those that recognized him in the crowds was some world-class chirping.
“It was love all the way until they got a chance to really speak their minds,” George said. “Soon as I roll the window down, they like this (trying to look into his car), ‘Yo, that’s Paul George! That’s Paul George! Yo, we could have kept Tobias [Harris]!’ Shout out TB, it ain’t no joke at TB, but ... ‘We could have kept Tobias, you gonna do this s--t!’ It was funny, but it was some s--t you take to the heart. Like, ‘You right. Facts. I got you.’”
That’s pretty harsh stuff knowing how fans felt about Harris during his six seasons with the Sixers. I suppose it’s healthy that George can laugh about it now, especially considering that he has quite a bit of work ahead of him to try to turn the fans around after his first season in Philadelphia. Love them or hate them, Philly sports fans will hold you accountable.