Paul George has only been active for two games and is already being counted on to carry the shorthanded Sixeswrites Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

George made his season debut on Monday after recovering from a bone bruise in his left knee. On Wednesday, Tyrese Maxey is suffering from a hamstring injury that will keep him out for at least a week. Joel Embid won’t be eligible to return from his suspension until Tuesday, but he will likely miss Wednesday’s game because he won’t play on back-to-back nights.

That leaves a heavy burden on George as he tries to turn the Sixers around after their 1-6 start that left them at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

‘I’m still trying to get my body back’ he said. “Just rhythm. I think my execution is just off and my rhythm, my timing with ball handling is just off, and I’m just trying to get a feel for that. These are really my first real, real, real live situations playing these games.

George has averaged 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals in his first two games and is coming off a strong shooting night, going 7-of-9 from the field on Wednesday in the loss to the Clippers. However, he has been sloppy with the ball and has already made 10 turnovers.

“So they’re throwing a lot of things at me that I’m not quite ready for right now because I’m still trying to get healthy again, the lungs together and the cardio together,” George said. ‘I’ll be better. I will do everything I can, but it is a difficult period, I would say for myself, and then I have to be better for these guys.

There’s more on the Sixers:

• Head coach Nick Nurse said Kyle Lowry And Reggie Jackson will both see more playing time with Maxey sidelined, and two-way guard Jeff Dowtin can also be used (Pompey’s Twitter video link). Rookie Jared McCain offers another point guard option. “I think he’s obviously had some really great moments,” Nurse said about McCain. “It gives us some energy, some shooting, and also breaks down the scoring if you can get it to the basket. Certain nights will require long stretches from him.”
• Philadelphia faces the Lakers on Friday Guerschon Yabusele on the court with Le Bron James for the first time since he dove over him in the Olympic gold medal match. Yabusele told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda that from then on he wants to “go further” and achieve more in his basketball career. The immediate goal is to reestablish himself in the NBA, and he has been able to get consistent playing time with Embiid sidelined. “He probably has more than we thought,” said nurse. “…He was solid every night, good some nights. He’s always solid. He plays hard and is pretty good at basketball. He knows when to move it to the next one. He knows when to shoot.”
• Former NBA guard Jameer Nelsonnow in his second season as general manager of the Sixers’ G League affiliate in Delaware, talks to Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer about his desire to one day manage an NBA team.