The Sixers went all in this summer, making their biggest free agency splash in years by signing Paul George. But let’s be real—it hasn’t exactly gone as planned. A longtime analyst recently put him on blast, and honestly, it’s not hard to see why. Like most of the team, George has been battling injuries all season. He’s already missed chunks of games, most recently because of a finger issue.

Philly’s Big Three? Yeah, they’ve barely shared the floor—just 294 minutes across 15 games. That’s not exactly what fans had in mind when this roster came together. Meanwhile, the Sixers are slipping further away from the postseason. They’re 2.5 games behind the Bulls for the last play-in spot, and that gap isn’t shrinking fast. With one of the league’s six worst records, they now have a 45.8% chance of keeping a top-six pick. Not exactly the kind of “winning” Philly was hoping for.

On First Take, the ESPN analyst made it clear—George should shut it down for the year as he’s stopping his podcast to focus on his health.

“What I would do is I’d have sat down for the rest of the year because the Sixers are trash. They’re horrible. They’re awful, primarily because of the health of Joel Embiid,” Smith said. “Without him, you’re not going anywhere anyway, and as a result, if you’re Paul, George, you’re only putting yourself and taxing stuff from your body that you don’t need to be taxing. You got three years to go on the max 212 deal. Okay, prioritize the next three years. This season is done. You ain’t winning the damn thing. You ain’t getting nothing out of this season. Go home, get yourself right, and be ready for next.”

However Rudy Gay disagreed with SAS, who felt that PG needs to play more.

Smith quickly fired back, pointing out George’s age. “Uh Rudy, he turns 35 in May.” Rudy didn’t back down. “We basketball players, that’s what we do,” they shot back.

Smith doubled down. “He got to be ready for the next three years.” he said.

Smith then shifted gears, bringing up Sixers’ future plans and a potential shake-up in Philadelphia. “And oh, by the way, last point for you Al. Josh Harris. I want to make sure everybody understands this. Josh Harris, the owner of the Sixers, is also the owner for the Washington Commanders, who’s the co-owner in his group. It would happen to be Irvin Magic Johnson, and if you Daryl Morey, I don’t know whether it’s true or not.”

“But if rumors are correct, that Josh Harris told you he was leery on giving Joel Embiid a max extension, and you said, Daryl Morey, it had to be done—if those reports are true. Change is coming to Philadelphia. It’s just a prediction. It’s just a prediction.” he concluded.

With all the uncertainty surrounding the Sixers, their injury problems just got worse. Eric Gordon is now the latest player to be sidelined.

The veteran guard recently underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right wrist, and recovery won’t be quick. The team expects to re-evaluate him in about three months, but until then, he’s out. Updates on his status will come later, but for now, Philly has yet another setback to deal with.

Not only SAS, Chad Johnson and Shannon Sharpe express their opinion on Paul George shutting down his podcast

Shannon Sharpe commended George for stepping away from Podcast P, but he and Chad Johnson weren’t convinced it would change anything for the Sixers. And honestly? It’s hard to argue.

“Everything is magnified when you’re losing,” Johnson said on Nightcap, questioning whether pressure to shut down the podcast came from “inside the [Sixers’] house” as the team’s struggles continued.

Sharpe took a different angle, pointing out how athletes often blame insignificant things for losing. He compared it to players saying they lost because they sat on their helmet in practice. He also brought up how his Broncos teammates wore the same suits throughout the playoffs, believing it helped them win the Super Bowl. While he credited George for reading the situation, he and Johnson remained skeptical that it would actually help the Sixers turn things around.

And honestly? It’s tough to see a path forward. Embiid is out indefinitely, George is still playing through finger pain, and Jared McCain is done for the season. The Sixers sit 2.5 games out of the final play-in spot with only 24 games left. Even if they somehow get in, they’d have to win two straight just to face the Cavs—a team that’s barely lost more all season than Philly has in this skid.

Pausing the podcast is good PR, but fixing this Sixers mess? That’s a whole different challenge.