Paul George scores 23 points in preseason debut, Sixers fall to T-Wolves in Iowa

Paul George scores 23 points in preseason debut, Sixers fall to T-Wolves in Iowa originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Paul George has now done more than just pose for photos and train with his teammates in a Sixers jersey.

The team's star summer signing made his preseason debut with the Sixers on Friday evening. He played 26 minutes and posted a team-best 8-for-15 shooting (4-for-9 from three-point range), six rebounds and two assists.

As for the game itself, the Sixers went 1-1 in the friendly, losing to the Timberwolves 121-111.

Friday's game took place at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, where Sixers head coach Nick Nurse once led Grand View University and the Iowa Energy. Joel Embiid was not with the team due to a previously scheduled exam on his knee, Nurse told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The next stops on the Sixers' preseason road trip are Saturday night against the Celtics and Monday against the Hawks.

In Des Moines, the Sixers started Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre Jr., George, Caleb Martin and Andre Drummond. They remained scoreless for almost three minutes and lost 6-0. On his first field goal attempt, George missed a fadeaway jumper late in the shot clock.

He finally got on the board with a driving layup and hit a three-pointer about a minute later.

George was eliminated with 33.6 seconds left in the first quarter. He scored five points on 2-for-6 shooting, four rebounds, one assist and one steal in the opening period.

His use in the second quarter was much more productive. George grabbed a rebound from Donte DiVincenzo's grasp and then put the ball in. He also hit a pull-up three-pointer on the Sixers' next game.

Moments later, George hit another three-pointer, smoothly exiting a Drummond ball screen as usual and sinking his shot over Timberwolves big man Naz Reid. The nine-time All-Star's skills as a pick-and-roll ballhandler and pull-up shooter should clearly be valuable when Embiid is off the court and the Sixers are looking for someone to provide offense.

George also provided several solid dishes that didn't result in assists, including a skip pass to Maxey in the first quarter and a feed to Drummond in the second quarter.

He scored the Sixers' final points of the first half with a nifty three-pointer with about eight seconds left.

Like George, Oubre didn't hesitate at all to shoot distance jumpers. He made five three-pointers in the game and made three of them.

The Sixers' bench was 0 for 8 from the field in the first half. Nurse used Kyle Lowry, Guerschon Yabusele, Eric Gordon and KJ Martin as his first four substitutes. Early in the second quarter, he added freshmen Jared McCain (nine points on 3-for-5 shooting) and Adem Bona.

Ricky Council IV and Reggie Jackson received increased minutes in the second half, although the Sixers' starters returned to start the third quarter.

They opened the second half brilliantly. A Maxey three-pointer cut Minnesota's lead to single digits and capped an 8-0 run.

The 23-year-old guard was fluid, aggressive and efficient early in this preseason with his off-the-dribble three-point shots. He scored 21 points (7 for 14 from the field, 4 for 7 from three-point range) and two assists on Friday.

Drummond was another statistical standout, grabbing seven offensive rebounds and eight defensive boards in 24 minutes. He added 10 points and two steals.

After trailing by 20 points, the Sixers continued their comeback early in the fourth quarter.

McCain made a couple of threes, including one after a nice drive-and-kick by Council, and a layup by Jeff Dowtin Jr. cut the team's deficit to 107-105. However, the Sixers' deep bench players ultimately failed to fully get over the hump.