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76ers star Paul George was greeted with boos in the first road game against the Clippers

Paul George has no hard feelings toward the Clippers. This feeling is apparently not mutual with the team's fan base. (Harry How/Getty Images)

Paul George returned to Los Angeles on Wednesday for the first time since leaving the Clippers for the Philadelphia 76ers last offseason. He was not warmly welcomed.

The fans in the Intuit Dome greeted the nine-time All-Star with a few boos as he walked onto the field and continued to do so early in the game.

The Wall of Clippers fans at one end of the arena also chanted “PG sucks.”

George didn't make his Sixers debut until Monday after suffering a bone bruise in his left knee in the preseason. He had 15 points, five assists and four rebounds, but shot just 1 of 7 from behind the arc in the two-point loss to the Phoenix Suns, but appeared to be back to full strength after missing the first five games of the missed the season.

George finished the game with 18 points and seven rebounds while shooting 7 of 9 from the field in the 76ers' 110-97 loss to the Clippers on Wednesday. Norm Powell led the Clippers with 26 points while hitting six 3-pointers. The Clippers, now 4-4 on the year, outscored the 76ers 33-17 in the third quarter to secure their 12-point victory.

The 76ers have now lost four straight and only have a record of 1-6 this season.

Before Wednesday night's game, George looked back on his time with the organization and the failed contract negotiations – which he now admits was a bit shocking.

His relationship with Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and the rest of the team's front office never soured. However, he still decided to sign a four-year, $212 million contract with the 76ers in free agency.

“I think it was kind of misinterpreted or [the] The narrative was somehow not written correctly in terms of the relationship with [president] Lawrence [Frank]the relationship with Steve Ballmer,” George said before the game, via Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “I mean, they’ve been great the whole time I’ve been here.”

“That's kind of why it ended up being such a shocking decision. But they were great. The time here, I think it's kind of refreshing to be on the side and have a partnership like that with a front office.” And I think that was probably the highlight of the whole thing [time with the Clippers]. How great they have been during my tenure here.”

George spent five seasons with the Clippers, who traded him before the 2019-20 season. Although George excelled in his time with the organization, the team only reached a conference final once and was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs each of the last two years.

George and the Clippers initially talked about a three-year extension – the same deal Kawhi Leonard got – but negotiations stalled over the course of the season. When the two sides reconvened after a year, George wanted either an offer with a maximum term of four years or a no-trade clause.

Eventually, the Clippers and George went their separate ways. The deal that would have kept George in his hometown and played alongside Leonard and James Harden fell through.

“Paul obviously thought it was the right choice for him [to leave]. I’m going to miss him,” Ballmer said, via ESPN. “Very good person. I like him a lot, except when they play against us. Wish him all the best, just not if they play against us. And he was a good clipper.”

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