Thunder forward Paul George missed his second game of the season Thursday night against the Philadelphia 76ers due to shoulder soreness, head coach Billy Donovan said.
Donovan told reporters prior to the game on Thursday that George’s status against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night is still not yet known. He also said he was still working to find out the specifics of the injury.
The injury apparently happened at some point during the game against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night. George logged 40 minutes during that contest and scored 25 points.
After playing on Thursday night, the team did not practice or hold media availability so the next opportunity for an update on the status of George will be Saturday in San Antonio.
The news of the injury on Thursday was a bit surprising since there hasn’t been much discussion of any potential issue for George. The injury could explain his struggles over the past couple of games, though.
George scored just 14 points against the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night while he shot a combined 26 percent (11-of-43) from the field in his previous two games, including 22 percent (5-of-23) from 3-point range.
Donovan opted to start Markieff Morris in place of George. Morris recorded 17 points and four rebounds on 7-of-12 shooting from the field in 19 minutes of work.
While George has certainly been outstanding this season for OKC, the team is likely more concerned with his shoulder and his general health with just 21 games left in the season.
The game against the Spurs is set to tip off at 7:30 p.m. CT.
