Paul George notches his best game as a Sixer, and begins long-awaited partnership with Joel Embiid

On the 76ers’ first possession Tuesday night, Paul George cut along the baseline and took a feed from Joel Embiid for an underneath finish.

That sparked George’s best outing as a Sixer, when he totaled 29 points on 10-for-19 shooting, 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals in a 111-99 loss to the New York Knicks at the Wells Fargo Center. It arrived in the long-awaited debut of the on-court partnership between the Sixers’ former MVP and their flashy free-agent addition, after a knee issue and three-game suspension kept Embiid sidelined for the season’s first nine games. George described it as a valuable initial lesson in sharing the court with the superstar big man.

“He just opens the floor up so much,” George said after the game. “So it was a lot for me to take away from this game on how I can free myself up even more, and how I can try to help him get into a rhythm and free himself up even more.”

» READ MORE: Joel Embiid says ‘we’ll be fine’ once Sixers get their big trio on the court together amid slow start

Tuesday also marked another step in George’s own acclimation process with his new team, which was delayed by a knee bone bruise that forced him to miss the season’s first five games. He scored 11 first-quarter points, keeping his team afloat on a night it shot 37.3% from the floor. He went 7-for-11 from three-point range, smoothly stepping into multiple attempts and draining one impressive off-balance launch in the second quarter. He mixed in his signature silky jumpers.

Another sign of his physical improvement: when he jumped into the crowd to save a loose ball in the second half.

“I felt my wind was coming back a little more,” said George, who played 32 minutes. “I was a little more energetic. My legs were a little more into the shots, which allowed me to kind of get in a rhythm. I’m going longer stints, I feel like, of being able to run without tiring out so fast.

“Just trying to challenge myself and being as active as possible on both ends, just so I can build that out and be where I want to be toward the middle of the season.”

Tuesday’s performance came two days after George’s spotty — literally and figuratively — home debut.

He got poked in the eye early in Sunday’s overtime win over the Charlotte Hornets, causing blurry vision throughout a 6-for-18 shooting night. He missed the potential game-winner at the end of regulation, noting he put himself in a “tricky situation” because he tried to keep the ball for the last shot instead of seizing an immediate opening off the inbounds pass. Then, he had to sit during overtime because he had essentially run out of minutes, a reality he called “completely frustrating.” But he also finished with seven assists in 33 minutes, illustrating how he also creates for teammates.

Sixers coach Nick Nurse acknowledged Sunday that he and George had engaged in recent conversations about how the (temporarily) necessary shorter-minute stints had hindered the player’s ability to establish personal flow. A shorthanded — and seemingly ever-changing — roster for all 10 games so far also means the Sixers’ offensive package has been “very, very small,” Nurse said.

» READ MORE: Paul George's big scoring night, Sixers' shooting woes highlight loss to Knicks

Before Tuesday, they attempted to get George the ball on the move, or in some ball-screen actions, or through post-ups. Nurse and teammate Caleb Martin noted that helping George create space is crucial. Against the Knicks, George simply knocked down more shots in some similar sets, Nurse said.

“He made one or two really tough ones,” Nurse said. “But, other than that, I think he did a good job of creating — either he did, or we did. I thought he looked really confident scoring the ball tonight.”

Still, Embiid’s sheer presence naturally expands the offensive possibilities. Nurse said before Tuesday’s game that he would not need to force as many players into specific spots, mimicking (with sound effects) forcefully dragging chess pieces around the board. George compared the attention from multiple defenders that Embiid attracts on the blocks to Kawhi Leonard, his former superstar teammate with the Los Angeles Clippers.

“For me, a lot of it was just kind of learning,” George said of playing alongside Embiid. “I’m in isolation [in] some moments, and he’s posting up. He’s a force out there, so you’ve got to find him. You’ve got to see him. Because he’s got a mismatch. Nobody can really guard him.”

The Sixers were still not at full throttle Tuesday, with All-Star point guard Tyrese Maxey out for a third consecutive game with a hamstring injury. All three stars’ availability is also uncertain for Wednesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers on the second night of a back-to-back, with George saying his status will depend on how he feels Wednesday morning.

But Tuesday was the first opportunity for Embiid and George to test their own two-man actions. They connected on the Sixers’ first possession, generating an easy bucket. It ignited George’s best performance with his new team — and, both players hope, marked the official start of a successful All-Star pairing.

“My job is [to] just try to make the game easy for him,” Embiid said of George. “Setting screens and getting them open. Just trying to make the game simple, especially as I’m getting back and trying to feel more confident.”