Paul George Dominates with Sixers Career-High Score in Win Over Wizards
The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Washington Wizards 153-131 on Wednesday night. The win improved Philadelphia’s record to 42-34 in the Eastern Conference race.
Offense carried the day
Paul George led the way with a dominant outing. He scored 39 points in 30 minutes, all coming in the first three quarters.
George shot 15-for-22 from the field and 6-for-12 from three. He also added six assists and five rebounds.
Tyrese Maxey complemented him with 28 points on 12-for-20 shooting. Together they fueled a 47-point third quarter that broke the game open.
Rotation choices and bench production
Coach Nick Nurse used a nine-man rotation. He chose not to stagger Maxey and George early, which briefly allowed Washington to take the lead in the second quarter.
Dominick Barlow started at forward in place of Kelly Oubre Jr. Oubre checked in about four minutes later. Barlow’s output dropped without Joel Embiid on the court.
Adem Bona started at center but battled foul trouble. Andre Drummond saw increased minutes and drilled two corner threes in the third quarter, giving him 30 threes on the season.
Bench guard roles
Justin Edwards received minutes while Cam Payne and Trendon Watford did not. Cam Payne’s run as a regular rotation guard appears to have ended.
VJ Edgecombe emerged as the primary backup point guard. He helped facilitate while Maxey and George operated in score-first modes.
In the second half Nurse inserted Payne over Edwards, and Payne immediately scored on a floater.
Joel Embiid’s odd absence
Joel Embiid was ruled out on Wednesday morning due to an illness. He had returned from a 13-game absence a week earlier and had played three straight games.
The lead-up to the decision created confusion. Embiid implied he might play by quote-tweeting a reporter on April 1, 2026, but later posted, “I guess they won’t let me play basketball!!”
A Sixers source confirmed the ruling to Filmogaz.com. President Daryl Morey told The Philadelphia Inquirer that Embiid was ruled out after he could not attend the team’s morning gathering.
Context and what’s next
The victory came against a Wizards squad that has been struggling this season. The Sixers used the offensive outburst to collect a valuable win in the playoff chase.
Philadelphia returns home on Friday to face the Minnesota Timberwolves. That matchup begins a penultimate back-to-back stretch to finish the regular season.
