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Paul George Reveals 76ers' No. 8 Jersey in Photos, Video; Honors 'Idol' Kobe Bryant

Mike Chiari

Paul George revealed Sunday that he will wear jersey No. 8 with the Philadelphia 76ers next season.

George showed off his new jersey Sunday on the latest episode of Podcast P with Paul George, presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment.:

The 34-year-old veteran divulged that his number choice is in honor of his "idol" Kobe Bryant, who was from Philly and wore No. 8 for the first 10 years of his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

"For me it's just, it's good to have those moments of just like when you look at that Jersey– Yeah, this is who I'm putting it on for so I wanted that moment of just being able to hold myself accountable," George said.

George is a 14-year NBA veteran who has played for the Indiana Pacers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers and wore No. 13 for the majority of his career, although he did wear No. 24 for his first few seasons, which was another one of Bryant's numbers.

Since the Sixers retired No. 13 for Wilt Chamberlain and No. 24 for Bobby Jones, George had to go in a different direction.

After spending the past five seasons with the Clippers, George became a free agent this offseason, and he signed a four-year, $211.58 million contract with the Sixers.

George will now form a "Big Three" with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, making the 76ers one of the Eastern Conference's most talented teams along with the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks.

Philadelphia has not advanced past the second round of the playoffs in any of the past seven seasons despite making the playoffs every year, but if George, Embiid and Maxey can stay healthy, the 76ers will be legitimate championship contenders in 2024-25.

   

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