The Sixers lost (another) close one to Atlanta, just two weeks after dropping a double overtime thriller to the Jalen Johnson led Hawks.

With the 120-117 loss, the Sixers fall to 14-11 on the season.

Despite the defeat, the Sixers gave fans plenty to be optimistic about. Most notably, Paul George continued his string of strong play by setting a new Sixers career-high with 35 points, VJ Edgecombe rebounded from a tough start to give another electric all-around performance, and Joel Embiid, despite an off shooting night, competed well in his first game this season playing on just one day of rest, as the restrictions imposed upon him as he works his way back from managing his left knee appear to be loosening.

Here’s what I saw.

Paul George has arrived

The Atlanta Hawks have been a markedly improved defensive squad ever since Trae Young went down with an injury. The Hawks, who had the 19th ranked defense last season and were 22nd before Young went down, have been the 12th stingiest squad since Young went down with a knee injury all the way back on October 29th.

With Tyrese Maxey missing his second straight game with an illness, with Joel Embiid having an off night from the perimeter and with VJ Edgecombe picking up two quick fouls, the Sixers needed someone to keep them competitive until the rest of their available key players were able to get going.

Enter Paul George.

With the exception of a brief stretch in January, George never felt like he was in any kind of a rhythm last season. Besides trying to learn how to play alongside a whole new set of teammates, George was constantly battling injuries, whether it was the pair of bone bruises which hampered him early in the season or the tendon injury he suffered later on in the season.

At no point did the veteran forward look comfortable.

After missing the first 12 games of his second season in Philadelphia, most fans were left wondering what to expect from the future Hall of Famer. But since coming back from the right ankle sprain on November 28th, George has been a consistent positive contributor on both ends of the floor, and over the past two games he’s downright carried the Sixers through important stretches of play.

With the Sixers trailing by 10 after 1, George came out with nine points in a little more than a minute’s worth of play to start the second quarter, pulling the Sixers back to within three in the blink of an eye. While George’s isolation game isn’t going to have quite the pop that it had in his 20s, he’s countering that with a deadly shot, a high release point, and a series of hesitation moves on his drives, with the ability to decelerate under control, that has left defenders at his whims. He hit open shots. He hit tough shots. He hit shots that very few people can make with any regularity.

George finished the night with a Sixers career-high 35 points on 11-21 shooting (to go along with four rebounds and three assists), George has now totaled 58 points over his last two games. It is the most points that he’s scored over a two game stretch during his brief Sixers career, with his previous high being 51 last season.

It may not quite be quite the version of Paul George that many envisioned when the Sixers gave him that massive contract last summer, but it’s seemingly getting closer and closer by the day. Regardless of expectations, he’s been a huge lift for the Sixers since returning to the lineup, and if the Sixers can ever get all of their “Big 3” going at the same time, there may still be some juice left in this core.

VJ Edgecombe showing growth after tough start

With Maxey out, the Sixers needed another big night from rookie VJ Edgecombe, but it was a struggle to start.

Edgecombe started the night picking up two quick fouls, sending him to the bench just five minutes into the game. He then struggled from the perimeter, making just one of his first six three-point attempts.

But even while he was cold from the perimeter, he was having one of those “the process actually isn’t that bad” kind of nights, finishing some impressive drives to the rim. Specifically, he hit Dyson Daniels, an incredible perimeter defender, with an explosive move to his left, finishing over a tough contest with his off hand. It just felt like if the perimeter shot ever showed up tonight, he had a chance to turn his game around.

And boy did that shot come around.

Edgecombe made a trio of 3s in a row late in the third quarter, and continued to find driving lanes against a tough, and long, Atlanta perimeter defense. He was making pull-up Js, tough, contested, catch-and-shoot Js, and off-ball movement 3s. And with the jumper going down, he was able to continue to put pressure on the rim.

When all was said and done, Edgecombe totaled 26 points, six rebounds and two assists, shooting 9-21 from the field and 4-10 from 3-point range.

With Maxey out of the lineup, Edgecombe has now strung together two of his most impressive games since his blistering start. Obviously, he’s had more opportunity with the Sixers’ star guard out of the lineup. But it was wildly impressive how much Edgecombe struggled to start the game, but was able to push through it, continue taking the shots that were there for him, and never lose confidence in the work that he has put in to get to this point.

For Edgecombe to have that much confidence in his perimeter shot, this early into his career, is wildly encouraging. He might not continue to put up 20+ when Maxey comes back, but that’s okay. The key is that he continues to showcase the skill set, and more importantly the confidence, to do so when called upon.

Joel Embiid’s up and down play

I mentioned in the recap of the Pacers game that Embiid has been at war with his body, both the knee and the mental hurdle of learning to trust the knee, over the last two years. And playing tonight, with just one day of rest, was a step forward for the big man in his return back, even if the results were subpar.

And while Joel Embiid didn’t have the incredible shooting touch that he displayed in his 39-point outing against the Pacers, he still did enough positive on the court, and showed enough trust in the knee, to come away optimistic, even if the perimeter shot wasn’t quite consistent enough to leave with a big statistical came.

Embiid was more committed on the glass than he has been for most of the season, finishing with 14 rebounds (6 offensive) in his 30 minutes of play, to go along with 22 points on 8-20 shooting. He attempted some tough drives to the rim, including some where his explicit goal seemed to be to draw a foul off the dribble. He only attempts those moves when he’s confident in the knee, and if he’s confident in the knee after having played 32 minutes just two nights before, that’s progress.