NBA suspends 76ers’ Paul George 25 games for anti-drug policy violation, citing mental-health treatment

The NBA suspended Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George for 25 games without pay on Jan. 31 after ruling that the nine-time All-Star violated the league’s anti-drug program, removing a key starter from a team trying to secure playoff position and raising questions about how the sport polices medication used for mental health.

Suspension details and financial impact

The suspension took effect immediately, beginning with Philadelphia’s home game that night against the New Orleans Pelicans. Under the penalty, George will forfeit roughly $11.7 million of his $51.7 million salary this season and is eligible to return March 25, when the 76ers host the Chicago Bulls. By then, only 10 regular-season games will remain.

In a brief statement released through his representatives, George acknowledged the violation, apologized and linked the failed test to treatment for a mental-health issue.

“Over the past few years, I’ve discussed the importance of mental health, and in the course of recently seeking treatment for an issue of my own, I made the mistake of taking an improper medication,” George said. “I take full responsibility for my actions and apologize to the Sixers organization, my teammates and the Philly fans for my poor decision making during this process.”

He added that he intends to use the suspension to ensure his “mind and body are in the best condition to help the team when I return.”

What the league did—and didn’t—say

The league’s announcement did not identify the substance involved or describe the circumstances of the violation. Under the jointly negotiated NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program, the league is barred from releasing testing details beyond the length and type of discipline imposed.

The NBA said only that George violated the “terms of the NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program” and that his punishment matched the typical first-offense suspension in cases involving performance-enhancing substances or related masking agents. The program treats drugs of abuse more harshly, with players subject to “dismissal and disqualification” from the league and a multiyear ban before they can apply for reinstatement.

In recent years, several players — including Deandre Ayton, John Collins and Wilson Chandler in 2019 — have served 25-game suspensions for testing positive for diuretics or growth hormone-releasing compounds categorized as performance enhancers. In those cases, the league publicly identified the substances. In George’s case, it has not.

The National Basketball Players Association has not announced any appeal on George’s behalf. In earlier suspensions, players and the union occasionally sought independent arbitration, arguing that a positive result stemmed from contaminated supplements or unintentional ingestion. George has not made that claim publicly, and said he “made the mistake” and “takes full responsibility.”

The immediate fallout for Philadelphia

For Philadelphia, the suspension hits at a sensitive point in the season and complicates plans around the Feb. 5 trade deadline. When the league announced the punishment, the 76ers were 26-21 and sixth in the Eastern Conference. With George in the lineup this season, they were 16-11; without him, 10-10.

Head coach Nick Nurse said the team will keep George involved in day-to-day operations even though he cannot appear in games.

“He’s still part of the team,” Nurse told reporters after the suspension was announced. “Can’t play the games but still allowed in the facility and practice and all that stuff. I just told him we care about him, we’re here to help him.”

Nurse credited George’s approach in his second year with the franchise.

“I feel like he’s played pretty well this year, borderline very well,” Nurse said. “He’s been really fun to coach, a really good teammate, showing some great leadership.”

George, 35, signed a four-year, $212 million maximum contract with Philadelphia in July 2024 after five seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. His first year with the 76ers was uneven. Knee and adductor issues limited him to 41 games, and he averaged 16.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists — his lowest scoring output in a decade. George later described that season as “rock bottom.”

Last summer, he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and missed the first 12 games of the 2025-26 campaign. Before the suspension, he appeared in 27 games and averaged about 16.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 38.2% from 3-point range. He was the team’s third-leading scorer behind guard Tyrese Maxey and center Joel Embiid, and had recently posted 32 points and nine 3-pointers in a win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 27.

Embiid, the 2023 NBA most valuable player, called George “impossible” to replace.

“You can’t replace it,” Embiid said after the Sixers’ win over New Orleans in the first game of the suspension. “Defensively, probably our best perimeter defender. Offensively, can play so many roles … creation, playmaking.”

Without George, Nurse has leaned more heavily on forwards Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker, along with wing Kelly Oubre Jr. and rookie VJ Edgecombe. Barlow, in particular, has seen an expanded role and posted a 26-point, 16-rebound performance against the Los Angeles Clippers shortly after the ban took effect. The shifts put more offensive responsibility on Embiid and Maxey while testing the depth of a roster built around a three-star core.

George’s absence also carries financial implications. Because salary is withheld during a suspension, a portion can be credited for luxury-tax purposes under league rules. Estimates indicate the 76ers will still finish the season above the tax threshold but closer to the line, potentially shaping how aggressive they are in adding salary at the deadline.

A broader debate over mental health and strict liability

Beyond Philadelphia, the suspension has reignited debate among former athletes and commentators about how players describe violations of drug policies when mental health is involved.

On the “It Is What It Is” podcast, Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Irvin questioned George’s framing, saying that invoking mental health can make criticism more difficult.

“When you put it under mental health, you drew that cover that nobody can really say anything about,” Irvin said, while adding, “I hope he gets the help he needs.”

On a television broadcast, former NBA center Shaquille O’Neal said players receive detailed information about prohibited substances and the length of time they remain detectable.

“Stuff like this should not happen,” O’Neal said.

Former All-Star Charles Barkley called the situation “fishy” and suggested that if a prescribed medication for mental health triggered the violation, the league and union may need to examine whether the anti-drug program allows for appropriate medical exceptions. Neither the NBA nor the NBPA has indicated that any change to the policy is under consideration.

The league, which in recent years has featured players in campaigns encouraging open discussion of anxiety, depression and other mental-health conditions, operates its anti-drug program on a strict-liability basis: players are responsible for what is in their system, regardless of intent. The confidential nature of the program means that in George’s case, the evidence that led to a 25-game suspension will not be made public even as his name and explanation are widely discussed.

For now, the 76ers must navigate a critical stretch of their season without the high-priced forward they signed to push them closer to a championship. George will watch, practice and wait, barred from playing but central to a case likely to be cited whenever the league’s drug rules and its mental-health posture collide again.