Sixers’ Paul George takes accountability for late blunders in loss at Kings, but rips ‘ticky-tack’ officiating

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Before leaving the Golden 1 Center’s visitors’ locker room late Wednesday, Paul George was already eager to watch the final five minutes of the 76ers’ shocking 113-107 loss to the Kings.

The perennial All-Star wing took accountability for his individual blunders during his team’s fourth-quarter meltdown, when he committed three turnovers and went scoreless on one shot attempt as the Kings finished the game on a 15-0 run. George also criticized the officiating after he picked up his fourth and fifth fouls in rapid succession with less than five minutes remaining and then fouled out with 7 seconds left.

“The people guarding me are getting free will to, like, do whatever: foul, scratch, hold, grab,” George said. “And then I get, like, cheap, ticky-tack calls. And even when I play through the fouling, [the officials] initially let [the defender] foul first, and then when I try to be aggressive back, they call it offensive.

“So it’s frustrating, but that’s been my career. I’ve got to be better. I’ve just got to be better, and I understand that.”

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George — who scored 30 points through three quarters, and finished with eight rebounds and five assists — was not the only Sixer to falter in crunch time.

All-Star point guard Tyrese Maxey acknowledged the Kings’ constant trapping “kind of flustered me a little bit,” which led to overall offensive stagnation and a live-ball turnover that DeMar DeRozan flipped into the game-tying transition layup with a minute left. Guerschon Yabusele committed a rare go-ahead goaltending, which gave Sacramento a 109-107 lead with 33.8 seconds remaining. Kyle Lowry’s turnover in the waning seconds prevented the Sixers from getting a final shot attempt.

“We couldn’t score,” Maxey said. “They took us out of the stuff that we wanted to accomplish. Most of that’s my fault, so I’ve got to do a better job of closing out that game.”

George also shared the blame, saying he sometimes lacked shot-clock awareness — the Sixers had a violation with 2 minutes to go, which set up a Keon Ellis three-pointer — and should have attacked with the ball earlier in possessions. Instead, the Kings defense could set up those double teams and “kind of [shrink] the floor,” George said.

Sixers coach Nick Nurse also expressed disappointment with the referees’ calls on George throughout the game. Nurse noted that George took 20 shots, including several on drives to the basket, but attempted only four free throws (as a team, the Kings had a 24-14 advantage in foul-shot attempts). George picked up two fouls during the first quarter, which disrupted a blistering 14-point outburst in the opening frame.

Wednesday’s whistles came after George picked up five fouls during the Sixers’ previous two wins at the Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz, which has thrown off Nurse’s rotations. George spent at least one timeout Wednesday asking for an explanation from officials — or “putting them on notice” when “I know they see that [the opponent is] fouling, and they’re going to let them get away with some stuff.”

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“I understand it’s a tough job that they have,” George added. “But my problem is ticky-tack calls on me, and then they allow [the opponent] to play [with] more contact on me than in the contact that I’m dishing out. It’s unacceptable.”

Added Nurse: “All of [George’s fouls] were so touchy.”

It initially appeared that the Sixers’ first possession illustrated how the night would unfold for George, when Maxey jumped on the scorer’s table to save a loose ball that eventually found George for an open three-pointer. He maintained his aggression early on, seizing driving lanes, midrange opportunities, and open deep shots. He acknowledged that a second-quarter back injury — the result of successfully preventing his head from hitting the court when he fell following an inside finish — caused some physical limitations in the second half and was “a little sore” following the game.

George, though, believes his downhill mentality can apply, even while playing alongside former NBA MVP Joel Embiid, who sat out the game to rest his foot, sinus, and knee injuries. Their on-court partnership remains a work in progress, as the normally efficient and crafty George entered Thursday averaging 16.1 points on 41.5% shooting. Those figures are on pace to be among his worst in those statistical categories during his 15-year NBA career.

“Me attacking early before the defense is set, especially when big fella’s out there,” George said of playing with Embiid, “there will be plenty of opportunities to kind of attack and strike quick. So I think that was one of the takeaways that I saw and tried to take advantage of tonight.”

The next chance to put that back into practice could come as early as Thursday at the Golden State Warriors, when Embiid is expected to return for the second night of the back-to-back to conclude this four-game Western Conference swing.

But before that, George was eager to watch the final five minutes of Wednesday’s fourth-quarter meltdown.

“I’ll be better down the stretch,” he said. “… and help, especially Tyrese, kind of put this game away and finish.”