The Philadelphia 76ers have a Paul George problem. Signed to be the last member of a big three alongside Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, he has struggled to be even a shadow of the player he was with the Los Angeles Clippers. With their 2025 pick being top-6 protected and owed to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the 76ers are committed to being competitive this season despite being 11th and 2.5 games behind the Chicago Bulls, who are in 10th. To achieve this, the 76ers could facilitate a reunion with Jimmy Butler, the belle of the 2024-25 trade ball.
The 76ers Could Move Off Paul George With Jimmy Butler Reunion
HOW IT STARTED
The 76ers entered the season with a lot of optimism. They deserved to feel hopeful about their title hopes after the offseason they had. Heading into the offseason, the Sixers had created over $60 million in cap space to construct a true contender around Embiid and Maxey.
Daryl Morey did what most front offices dream of doing but end up failing to do: they used their cap space wisely. They signed the most sought-after free agent in George ahead of teams like the Golden State Warriors and Orlando Magic. The Sixers signed NBA vets to team-friendly deals, including Paris 2024 Olympics standout Guerschon Yabusele. They even drafted well by adding Jared McCain. Yet, a 3-14 start derailed their season, and all the optimism disappeared. In the midst of this chaos, controversies thrived. From Embiid’s scuffle with a reporter to leaked information from a team meeting, things seemed to be going from bad to worse.
Paul George’s (Minimal) Impact
In December, however, things took a positive turn. The 76ers won 10 of their 13 games. George was a contributor, albeit an inefficient one. He averaged 16.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.7 assists on 42.6/33.8/77.4 shooting splits. He had a cumulative plus-minus of +1.5 for that span. For context, Yabusele—who’s on a veteran minimum—had +2.4 in that span.
It has not been all doom and gloom, though. As the calendar flipped from ’24 to ’25, the 76ers have fallen off a cliff, losing 10 of their next 12 in January. However, this has been George’s most impactful stretch of the season. He’s averaging 20.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.3 assists on 46.0/43.5/100 splits. It remains to be seen if this good run of form is the new norm or an aberration.
Embiid continues to struggle with injuries, currently out with knee swelling, which has been a chronic issue for years now. The 76ers were aware that Embiid was dealing with knee issues before agreeing to a three-year, $192.9 million maximum contract extension with him. That’s why Morey is a huge proponent of the big three approach to roster construction. He signed George to a four-year, $212 million contract so that George would pick up the slack when Embiid is not around. Yet that gamble is so far not paying off as the Sixers struggle. A change may be in order.
George’s Fit on the Heat
The Butler saga on the Heat is easily the story dominating headlines at the moment. Butler has made his intentions clear to the Heat brass that his future lies elsewhere after they refused to offer him a contract extension. Butler’s trying to force his way to the Phoenix Suns, but there are obstacles to a potential deal. Perhaps the biggest one is the Heat’s disinterest in Bradley Beal. They already passed on acquiring him once. They have a couple of guard options they are fine with at the moment.
However, the prospect of acquiring George for Butler could be more appealing than the Suns’ offer. After all, George was highly sought-after in the offseason. The Heat could view George as a perfect complement to their core of Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. After all, the Heat attempt the ninth most threes in the league, making the seventh most. George shoots 38.4% for his career from behind the arc on 6.8 attempts per game. Butler has never been a volume three-point shooter (2.4 attempts per game), nor has he been an efficient one (33.0% for his career). George also is a two-way threat, though that seems to be more reputation than reality at this juncture. Still, he is no slouch on the defensive end and could be disruptive in Erik Spoelstra’s schemes. The 76ers have draft picks to offer to sweeten the deal.
A Jimmy Butler-76ers Reunion
Butler last played for the 76ers in the 2018-19 season when that now-famous Kawhi Leonard multiple-bounce shot ended their season. Butler spent less than a year with the team, having joined midseason from the Minnesota Timberwolves. A Butler reunion could be what salvages a 76ers season heading for the rocks. Butler probably propels the 76ers to be the team that draws the most fouls when Embiid is playing. It also reduces the pressure on Embiid’s availability during the season, though that’s on paper. Butler is notorious for being hyper-focused on the postseason, often to the detriment of the regular season.
Speaking of the postseason, playoff Jimmy is exactly what the 76ers need to get over the hump. The closest the 76ers ever came to making a conference finals during the Embiid tenure was when Butler was on the team. It’s pretty poetic that he could be the galvanizing force to get them over the hump.
A Butler-76ers Reunion Will Be Poetic
The last time Butler was on the Sixers, they chose Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris over him. This time, they could use him to move off a misfiring investment and bring hope to an underwhelming season.
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