Paul George Hits Six 3s in His Philly Return, Lillard Beats OKC and Giannis Plays Through a Sore Wrist: Tuesday's Six-Pack

By Jordan Pierce, RF Sports Radio NBA voice

NBA fans, Tuesday was supposed to be about Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. It ended up being about Paul George, who walked back into Philadelphia and buried the team that traded him. Six games, and three of them had a former star making a point.

The facts

Per the Associated Press, George scored 36 points with six 3-pointers in his return to Philadelphia, and Tatum added 21 as Boston beat the 76ers 123-101 for its ninth win in 10 games. Brown, traded to the Sixers over the summer, got into early foul trouble and scored 13, and Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 24. Joel Embiid scored 16 after landing awkwardly late in the first half, per the official box score.

In Portland, Damian Lillard scored 25 and Deni Avdija had 24 points and eight assists as the Trail Blazers beat Oklahoma City 123-103, AP reported. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 on 8-of-22 shooting for a Thunder team missing Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace; the teams meet again tonight. In Salt Lake City, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 30 with 11 rebounds while icing a sprained right wrist on the bench, and Miami beat Utah 115-109. He passed Gary Payton for 39th on the career scoring list, and the Jazz have lost nine straight.

The Knicks beat Milwaukee 117-85 for their fourth straight win behind Jalen Brunson's 23 and Karl-Anthony Towns' 21 and 16; the Bucks, without Tyler Herro, have lost seven straight and are 1-10. Phoenix hit 22 3-pointers in a 133-110 win over the Clippers, and Franz Wagner's 33 snapped Orlando's four-game skid in a 107-100 win at Sacramento, where rookie Darius Acuff Jr. scored 29.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: Philadelphia made the Brown trade to win games like this one, and it got blown out by 22 at home. That is one game, but Brown with four fouls and a minus-27 is not the debut anybody in Philly wanted.

George looked like a guy with something to prove, and he proved it. Boston is 9-2 and might be better balanced than last year.

And give Lillard his flowers. Portland is 7-3, and he is playing like a guy who never left.

Opinion: the Bucks are in real trouble. One win in 11 games, seven straight losses, and their top scorer is hurt. That is how coaches get fired.

What to watch next

Tonight's 10-game slate includes Cavaliers at Knicks at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN and Warriors at Rockets at 8:30 p.m. CT on ESPN, plus Spurs at Bulls and the Thunder-Blazers rematch, per ESPN. The Mavs play at Minnesota on Thursday. For Monday's recap, read our Nov. 10 Monday slate recap, and follow the league on our NBA page.

Radio question: after one night, who won the Brown-George trade?

Sources: NBA.com / AP - Tatum gets better of Brown; George drops 36 as Celtics top 76ers; NBA - Official scorer's report, Celtics at 76ers; ESPN / AP - Lillard scores 25 as the Trail Blazers beat the Thunder; ESPN / AP - Antetokounmpo scores 30 as Heat outlast Jazz; ESPN / AP - Knicks beat the Bucks 117-85; ESPN / AP - Suns ease past the Clippers 133-110; ESPN / AP - Wagner scores 33 as Magic beat Kings; ESPN - NBA scoreboard, Nov. 10 and Nov. 11.