76ers Team Notes

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Find the latest news on the Philadelphia Sixers.

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers Bell Ringer: Go Birds

In a season full of disappointing performances, the Sixers had another one Sunday as their Big 3 wasn’t enough to beat the Giannis-less Bucks.

Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:
Tyrese Maxey - 14
Jared McCain - 8
Joel Embiid - 8
Paul George - 7
Guerschon Yabusele - 4
Kelly Oubre Jr - 2
Ricky Council IV - 2
KJ Martin - 2
Justin Edwards - 2
Adem Bona - 1
Quentin Grimes - 1

---

The Sixers’ Big 3 was healthy again Sunday. It didn’t matter.

The Milwaukee Bucks, even without Giannis Antetokounmpo, had little trouble dispatching the Sixers 135-127 at Fiserv Forum.

The Sixers had no answer for Damian Lillard (season-high 43 points) and got destroyed on the glass — Milwaukee had 19 offensive rebounds and a 31-10 advantage in second-chance points. The Bucks put up 105 shots compared to 89 for the Sixers. It’s hard to win at any level when you give your opponent 16 extra shots.

Joel Embiid got off to a hot start but scored just three of his 27 points in the second half. Paul George continues to look uncomfortable dribbling the basketball and had just 12 points.

For a full recap, check that out here. The Sixers return home Tuesday to take on the Toronto Raptors. For now, let’s talk Bell Ringer — and Go Birds!

Tyrese Maxey: 39 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block

Maxey was the only player that was consistently good throughout this game. He was electric in the first half, working the two-man game with Embiid and scoring in multiple ways. The Sixers were very much in the game as Maxey and Embiid combined to score 50 of the Sixers’ 63 points.

Maxey doing Maxey things. ‍ pic.twitter.com/z0Tz8EjnbI

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) February 9, 2025​

In the second half, Maxey mostly kept it going. Embiid did not. And nobody else really picked up the slack. Feels like you can describe a bunch of Sixers losses that way this season.

Guerschon Yabusele: 18 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Yabusele returned to the lineup after missing the loss in Detroit. At first, the Sixers had Yabusele in the starting lineup, but the team made a late change and inserted rookie Justin Edwards. Maybe it was a decision to make sure Yabusele could play minutes at the five or to go smaller with Antetokounmpo out of the lineup.

The shame is that it led to Yabusele playing just 24 minutes. Nick Nurse recently said that he started Yabusele because he believed Yabusele was one of the team’s five best players. That’s still the case, despite Edwards giving the team great minutes lately.

After a quiet first half, Yabusele was a part of a faux comeback late in the game. With how poorly Embiid played in the second half, it might’ve made sense to go to Yabu sooner and play faster. I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the second half of the season, but Yabusele should start — or at the very least play starter’s minutes.

Quentin Grimes: 10 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 block

It wasn’t the most efficient night for Grimes, but his motor was noticeable again in his second game with the Sixers.

Grimes is also fearless and makes quick decision, two very welcome things with this current roster.

.@qdotgrimes for three! pic.twitter.com/gmiSHPPHjl

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) February 9, 2025​

On a day when the Sixers got their butts kicked on the glass and didn’t necessarily share the ball all that well, Grimes had seven rebounds and five assists. It’s not just effort and athleticism with Grimes, either. It’s clear he has an understanding of how to play and is a plus defender.

Again, I don’t know what’s going to happen in the second half, but Grimes needs to be a big part of it.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...yrese-maxey-guerschon-yabusele-quentin-grimes

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Joel Embiid clarifies comments on potential surgery on left knee

Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images

After the ESPN broadcast reported that Joel Embiid would need another surgery, the star center clarified postgame that surgery is a possibility but not inevitable.

Updated, 7:36 p.m.: Never a dull moment with your Philadelphia 76ers.

After ESPN sideline reporter Lisa Salters reported during the Sixers-Bucks game Sunday that Joel Embiid told her that he would need another surgery on his left knee this offseason, the star center clarified those comments postgame. Surgery is not necessary at this moment, but could be an option if the knee continues to be an issue.

This is what Embiid said, per The Inquirer’s Keith Pompey:

On the heels of the ESPN report, Sixers center Joel Embiid was asked after the game if offseason knee surgery will be necessary.
“There’s not much to say,” he said. “I think it’s just about when ... I mean, the straightforward answer is when you got something that’s inconsistent,…

— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) February 9, 2025​

As Daryl Morey mentioned this past Friday, Embiid’s knee is healing slower than anticipated. Morey also said that the organization is optimistic about Embiid’s long-term outlook and that these occurrences of swelling are expected to subside eventually. That organizational stance has not changed and none of the half dozen medical experts the team has consulted are currently recommending surgery, per a team source.

---

You might not be watching Sixers-Bucks ahead of the Eagles playing in the Super Bowl, but we got quite the news dump mid-broadcast.

According to ESPN sideline reporter Lisa Salters, Embiid told her that he believes he’ll need another surgery and more recovery time before his knee full recovers.

Joel Embiid believes he will need another knee surgery this offseason.

(via @saltersl) pic.twitter.com/8V4rj9QagU

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 9, 2025​

That is quite the bombshell for a Sunday matinee game ahead of Eagles-Chiefs!

This is a development nobody would’ve seen coming after hearing from Embiid and Daryl this past week. Embiid mentioned after returning to the lineup in a win over the Dallas Mavericks that his surgically repaired knee will need more recovery time before the swelling stops. Morey said the organization was optimistic that the swelling and pain in Embiid’s knee would eventually lessen or be non-existent, based on the medical experts the team consulted before Embiid signed a three-year max extension.

Nobody at any time has mentioned that Embiid could need another surgery. Any questions about the team potentially shutting Embiid down during what looks to be a lost season have been dismissed.

With the Sixers coming into play at 20-31 and still sitting outside the East play-in picture, it does sort of beg the question of why Embiid would continue to play on a knee that needs surgery. Wouldn’t it be in everyone’s best interest for Embiid to have the surgery now, allowing him to have the most possible recovery time so he can be fully healthy for the start of the 2025-26 season?

Embiid will surely be asked about it postgame. We’ll see what he has to say.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...ee-surgery-sixers-daryl-morey-nick-nurse-espn

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Non-76er games to watch this week as the NBA enters All-Star break looking drastically different

Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images

Luka’s a Lakers, Butler’s in the Bay, and the Cavs went Hunting. Lots to watch. Also... I make a case for why the new All-Star Game format will be fun!

We know the NBA changes rapidly, but that was a wild trade deadline. No player was safe. From stars like Luka Dončić to, um, veterans like Cody Zeller, there are so many old faces on new teams that it was hard to keep up.

We’ll all get a bit more time to process the changes later this week as the NBA All-Star weekend rolls around. Until then, there’s a few gamedays where we can see how the traded players are faring.

I’ll highlight the biggest names below, and one game that could inch the Philadelphia 76ers closer to the play-in, which I’ve been saying all year without them ever cracking the glorious 10th seed. But, don’t let their inconsistencies sour your NBA appetite, there is much to enjoy.

Feb. 10: Los Angeles Lakers @ Utah Jazz
In 50 years, the 2025 NBA trade deadline, and maybe the whole season, will be remembered as the Luka deadline. For reasons they’re still trying to get people to understand, the Dallas Mavericks traded the transcendent superstar to the Los Angeles Lakers.

After dealing with an injury, Luka seems set to make his Laker debut tonight. He’s been upgraded to ‘questionable’ and coach JJ Redick said Luka is “likely” to suit up against the Utah Jazz. It’s can’t miss TV. Even if the Jazz are a horrendously bad basketball team that are actively trying to lose, it’s the first time we’ll see a star of Luka’s magnitude that got traded mid-season unleash his famous wrath on a foe.

A new era in Los Angeles Luka Doncic is expected to make his Lakers debut tonight vs. the Jazz! 10:30 PM ET on ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+

— ESPN (@espn.com) 2025-02-10T14:35:16.577Z

Feb. 11: Detroit Pistons @ Chicago Bulls
Chicago finally got rid of Zach LaVine, trading him to the Sacramento Kings. LaVine has played awesome this year. The Bulls didn’t get much back for him. Those two facts mean the Bulls should get worse and fall from their current 10th-seed position, opening up a spot for the Philadelphia 76ers.

And Detroit should beat them. They did less than two weeks ago and slightly improved their team by picking up Dennis Schröder from the Golden State Warriors in a multi-team trade built around Jimmy Butler heading from Miami to Golden State.

Schröder should help alleviate the heavy playmaking burden Detroit’s Cade Cunningham carries every game. Cade has thrived with it. He’s led the Pistons to the sixth seed and earned his first All-Star nod. But he turns the ball over a lot. Of the 10 players in the league with a usage rate higher than 30.0, only Victor Wembanyama has a higher turnover ratio (percentage of a player’s possessions that end in a turnover) than Cade. Wemby’s is 12.1 and Cade’s is 12.0.

Adding a playmaker for Cade to play off and hand the ball to when his vision for a possession isn’t coming to fruition should ease up the turnovers and make Detroit’s 15th-ranked offense rise a few spots.

First bucket as a Piston was a big one@DS17_FG × #DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/MMuuLeXUxK

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) February 9, 2025​

Feb. 12: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Toronto Raptors
The Cleveland Cavaliers broke up their magnificent regular season squad in a move they hope will pay off come playoffs. They traded Caris LeVert, Georges Niang and some second-round picks and swaps to the Atlanta Hawks for DeAndre Hunter.

Hunter is the wing the Cavs have sought for the past half-decade. In theory, he should fit perfectly between their star backcourt and star frontcourt. He was having a career year coming off Atlanta’s bench, averaging his most points (19.0) and highest three-point percentage of his six-year career. If his offense transfers and he makes more use of his 6-foot-8 frame on defense, the Cavs could genuinely threaten Boston these playoffs, and yes, that needs to be said despite their East-leading record. It don’t mean a thing…

Toronto’s major addition at the trade deadline was Brandon Ingram. They’re set to be a very intriguing roster of lengthy and tall playmaking wings. But, Ingram is injured right now so his debut is postponed. Also, despite a recent strong run, the Raptors probably want high lottery chances this offseason, so maybe Ingram’s debut will have to wait.

Feb. 13: Golden State Warriors @ Houston Rockets
Steph has help! As mentioned, playoff riser and multiple time trade-forcer Jimmy Butler now plays next to Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. He’s the final move for a franchise desperate to extend their legacy to a fifth championship. They were victorious in their first game together, and comfortably so. But that was against the Bulls. This Rockets team will be a great test.

Ime Udoka’s Rockets, though slipping recently, are the fourth seed in the Western Conference. They have the fourth-best defense and seventh-best net rating. They force the fourth-worst field goal percentage and limit threes at the second-best rate in the league. Steph and Jimmy have enough star power to overcome any defense, so watching them navigate this abrasive Rockets team, led by the all-encompassing arms and speed of Amen Thompson, will be cinema.

Feb. 14-16: All-Star Weekend
With Trae Young being announced as Giannis Antetokoumpo’s injury replacement for the Eastern All-Stars, it looks like no Philadelphia 76ers will be participating in the hallmark weekend. Tyrese Maxey has been playing like an All-Star as of late. But, it was just that, late.

Although the weekend has become stale in recent years, it’s still worth a watch. There’s a new All-Star game format that I …like?!

For 2025, there will be four ‘All-Star’ teams: The 24-player All-Star pool is split into three teams, drafted by the Inside The NBA hosts. The fourth team will be the winning team of the Rising Stars teams, which play a tournament on Feb. 14.

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The winning Rising Stars team and the Three All-Star teams will play in a single-elimination tournament, so two semi-finals and one final. For each game, whoever reaches 40 points first wins.

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It’s gimmicky. But, the NBA wanted competition. Call me naive, but I think the addition of the Rising Stars team will bring just that. The young players will want to prove they can beat the best of the best, and the All-Stars won’t want to lose to a bunch of nobodies.

If the Rising Stars make the Final, it should be a fun day, right?! Am I crazy for thinking that? I know that means the semi-final without the Rising Stars will be boring… but it was boring anyway. At least the games will be quicker.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...a-all-star-trades-butler-warriors-cavs-hunter

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers look to break three-game skid vs. Toronto Raptors

Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images

The Sixers come into this one relatively healthy while the Raptors have a couple big names out of the lineup Tuesday.

The Philadelphia 76ers will host the Toronto Raptors to start a back-to-back series before heading to Brooklyn to take on the Nets.

The Sixers are reeling from several disappointing losses, the latest against a Milwaukee Bucks team missing Giannis Antetokounmpo. Currently, they sit 1.5 games out of the final play-in spot in the East and trail the last playoff spot by 6.5 games. With time running out, these next two games are crucial for keeping postseason hopes alive.

With both Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid back in action, the duo hasn’t missed a beat, combining for 66 points in their last game. However, they didn’t get enough support to secure a win. Paul George, in particular, has struggled since returning from his finger injury, averaging just 11.7 points, 2.7 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 30.5 minutes per game. If the Sixers hope to turn things around, they’ll need more production from George and contributions from the rest of the roster.

The Sixers’ struggles have been largely due to their defense, which has been among the league’s worst. In February alone, they ranked in the bottom five in defensive rating, a key factor in their recent slump.

Head coach Nick Nurse confirmed that everyone on the Sixers participated in Monday morning’s practice, except for Kyle Lowry, Eric Gordon and Jared McCain. With a back-to-back ahead, it’ll be interesting to see how the team manages Paul George and Joel Embiid’s availability.

The Toronto Raptors have had an unusual season. Many expected this to be a transition year as they retooled around rising star Scottie Barnes. While injuries have kept key players sidelined and wins have been hard to come by, their recent trade for Brandon Ingram suggests they may be aiming to compete sooner rather than later. Ingram has yet to make his Raptors debut, but the team still features promising young talents like Immanuel Quickley and Gradey Dick.

RJ Barrett (concussion protocol) and Jakob Poeltl (right hip pointer) will also be out of the lineup for Toronto.

The Sixers have a great opportunity to pick up not just one win, but two, in this favorable back-to-back stretch. Let’s see if they can start it off on the right foot.

Game details​

When: Tuesday, Feb. 11, 7 p.m. EST

Where: The Center, Philadelphia, PA

Watch: NBC Philly

Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic

Follow: @LibertyBallers

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...to-watch-tyrese-maxey-joel-embiid-paul-george

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers Bell Ringer: Butler, Grimes shine in South Philly debut but 76ers fall to Raptors

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

The Philadelphia 76ers fell 106-103 to the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night, but Jared Butler and Quentin Grimes looked at home on their new team and Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 27 points.

Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:
Tyrese Maxey - 15
Jared McCain - 8
Joel Embiid - 8
Paul George - 7
Guerschon Yabusele - 4
Kelly Oubre Jr - 2
Ricky Council IV - 2
KJ Martin - 2
Justin Edwards - 2
Adem Bona - 1
Quentin Grimes - 1

---

Wait... we still have to cover this team this week? We haven’t even had the parade yet!

I mean. Uh. The Philadelphia 76ers fell 106-103 to the Toronto Raptors in their penultimate game before the approaching All-Star break.

The first quarter or so of basketball from the Sixers’ in this one left a lot to be desired, to say the least. In their second-worst opening frame of the season, Philadelphia put up just 18 points to Toronto’s 26. They pulled back into things midway through the second quarter though, thanks to some timely buckets from some young guns like Justin Edwards, Quentin Grimes and Jared Butler. The Sixers pulled out in front of the Raptors by halftime with a two-point lead at the break. Joel Embiid led the floor at the midway point with 17 points.

The latter half was a much less lopsided affair. Rather than either team staging big runs, the teams traded buckets and small leads with the game knotted up still with just a few minutes remaining. The Sixers actually had a chance to win the game, with possession of the ball down just two points with 20 seconds remaining. With Embiid wide open beyond the arc... this happened:

Can't even fault the crowd for the boo's raining down after this play... pic.twitter.com/1wc9nZFwkO

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

Yeah, your guess is as good as mine. Sixers fall 106-103. For a full recap, check that out here.

The Sixers have one more before the All-Star break, heading to New York City to take on the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night. Yes, this is another back-to-back for Philadelphia. Make that seven of those since the start of the new year.

Until then, let’s get to the Bell Ringer.

Jared Butler: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal (in 15:41 played)

Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

Butler probably endeared himself to a few fans in South Philly with this performance (if the end of the game didn’t wipe all good things from their minds...) on both ends of the floor. With 15 points on 6-for-10 field goal shooting, four rebounds (one offensive) and four assists for his teammates, Butler seems to be feeling very comfortable in a roster he’s only been on for a few days.

Oh, and he did all that in just 15:41 played, by the way. In his second period stint, Butler posted eight points, three rebounds and two assists in eight minutes. In just over seven minutes in the fourth frame, he tacked seven more points (off a triple and two driving lay-ups), another rebound and two more assists.

It’s nothing fancy or crazy highlight-worthy, he’s simply playing good fundamental basketball and providing a great spark for this Sixers’ team off the bench — a palpable spark that hopefully means he’ll continue to get more playing time from Nick Nurse.

Jared Butler into double-digit scoring now with 11 points after this triple! pic.twitter.com/DXzEBAfdYw

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

Quentin Grimes: 13 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

Another newcomer looking right at home with the Sixers is Quentin Grimes. Putting up 13 points off the bench Tuesday, he has now scored double-digits points in each of his first three games as a Sixer. Those 13 points didn’t come off the most efficient shooting, with Grimes shooting just 5-for-12 from the floor and 1-for-6 from long range, but he is still looking like a damn good addition providing some production for the Sixers. He isn’t afraid of a catch-and-shoot triple, is willing to drive into and finish through contact, fights for loose balls off the glass. He had seven rebounds with three on the offensive end, tied the team-high for assists with four, and had two steals.

I must not be the only one noticing his ability, either, with Nick Nurse starting Grimes over Justin Edwards in the second half of this one. Grimes ended up playing over 35 minutes off the bench against the Raptors — wouldn’t be entirely surprising to see him slotted into the starting lineup sooner or later.

Quentin Grimes with the catch-and-shoot triple for his first points at the Wells Fargo Center as a Sixer! pic.twitter.com/rxroQ9t6yE

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

Joel Embiid: 27 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

Look, I’m not going to tell you I think Embiid looks fully healthy. He doesn’t. The team isn’t even really claiming that he is at this point. The fact of the matter here is, though, that he continues to produce in spite of it. It is less aggressive than in the past with less bully ball into a ton of contact, but the points and rebounds count all the same this way.

Embiid worked the things he is good at — creating space for his teammates, drawing in defenses, scoring points and grabbing boards. He was finishing at the cup and, on drives he couldn’t take all the way to the rim, he’d hit from his midrange zone of comfort around the foul line. He also drew a ton of fouls off the Raptors and sank 10 of 13 attempts from the charity stripe. Maybe it’s not fun highlights or flashy dunks, what have you, but the production is there. Embiid finished with a team-leading 27 points on 8-for-19 field goal shooting with 12 rebounds, five coming on the offensive end. He also had four assists, a block and a steal.

Embiid takes it right to Orlando Robinson and hits the spinning fadeaway over him ️ pic.twitter.com/iPM8cyCKDp

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

(Whether he should be out there if he isn’t 100% healthy is irrelevant here, though a valid question. We aren’t here to debate valid questions, though, we just pick Bell Ringers.)

I have to include, however, how horrifically Embiid ended this game. Firstly, he couldn’t seem to sink a shot in the second half of the last frame. Then, the turnover with the game on the line was just so egregiously bad and, more importantly, completely unnecessary. Just take the damn shot! This was so bad that I almost removed Embiid from Bell Ringer contention, but it’s slim pickins these days.

Can't even fault the crowd for the boo's raining down after this play... pic.twitter.com/1wc9nZFwkO

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...-butler-quentin-grimes-joel-embiid-nick-nurse

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Quentin Grimes a recent bright spot in a dark period for the Sixers

Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images

Quentin Grimes, the recent trade acquisition from Dallas, is offering a fun respite from a mostly miserable stretch of games for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Philadelphia sports fans are currently on cloud nine after their Eagles crushed the Kansas City Chiefs down in New Orleans for the franchise’s second Super Bowl victory. Meanwhile, across S 11th Street back in Philly, the Sixers have fans on some sort of thunderhead cloud threatening to unleash a tornado or hailstorm at any point. Anyone that shifted from watching a nearly flawless Eagles performance on Sunday to whatever we witnessed in the Sixers’ 106-103 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night had to experience some form of sports whiplash.

However, even amidst the massive turmoil and strife, there have been a few bright spots this season for the Sixers, and one post-trade deadline ray of hope has been recent acquisition Quentin Grimes. With Caleb Martin revealed to be more injured than believed, necessitating the Sixers to send back a second-round pick to push the trade through, it’s surprising Dallas wanted to part ways with Grimes. But, well, Quentin is just a minor footnote on the ‘surprised Dallas wanted to part ways with him’ chart these days.

In three games with Philadelphia since arriving via trade from Dallas, Grimes has already established a firm role in head coach Nick Nurse’s rotation, even shifting into the starting lineup to start the second half Tuesday night against Toronto. In over 31 minutes per game across three contests, Grimes is averaging 12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists with only two turnovers. His dribble drive game has been more impressive than the 3-and-D label would have indicated. Quentin hasn’t been lights out as a shooter across the small sample size, going 5-of-18 (27.8 percent) from behind the arc, but the young guard has displayed versatility in that area.

Grimes can nail shots of the catch-and-shoot variety:

Quentin Grimes with the catch-and-shoot triple for his first points at the Wells Fargo Center as a Sixer! pic.twitter.com/rxroQ9t6yE

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

In addition to knocking them down off the dribble:

Quentin Grimes has been aggressive as a scorer in his first shift. Went right at GTJ in ISO earlier for a bucket at the rim, and here burns Dame for going under a ball screen. pic.twitter.com/16nExZlyyH

— Jason Timpf (@_JasonLT) February 10, 2025​

His tenacity as a perimeter defender is evident. In the Detroit game, I liked his recovery to block Malik Beasley’s three-pointer at the top of the key. Shades of Matisse Thybulle (shoutout to the guy who just wore a Thybulle jersey at the Super Bowl).

Grimes was the headliner of Daryl Morey’s trade deadline strategy to make this roster younger. The Sixers entered the season as the oldest team in the league, and while age may bring wisdom, it also brings slow rotations, a plodding offensive structure, and countless trips to the injury report. By bringing in Grimes and Jared Butler via a trade with Washington, and also converting former two-way player Justin Edwards to a standard NBA contract, Morey is signaling a significant and much-needed change on that front.

Now, I know nobody in Philadelphia wants to hear positivity around the Sixers. After all, these three games with Grimes have all been Sixers losses, in varying degrees of embarrassing fashion. Still, I wouldn’t lay any of that at Quentin’s feet. Whenever the Sixers do turn things around, I’d wager Grimes and this recent youth movement are heavily in the mix. Until then, enjoy Friday’s parade down Broad Street, Philadelphia.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...ixers-philadelphia-76ers-dallas-mavericks-nba

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

We’ve never needed the All-Star Break more

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Sixers do not play basketball for a week. That’s a good thing.

If you’re around my age, which is 30, the Sixers are the Philadelphia sports team you’ve seen have the least amount of success. The 2001 team was the first Philly sports team I truly loved, but the near quarter century that has followed has been a whole lot of pain and jokes made about the Sixers by other fanbases. The time in between Allen Iverson’s exit and The Process was a myriad of seasons stuck in NBA purgatory, and sadly the seasons ever since Sam Hinkie’s arrival have not resulted in anything significantly different despite countless changes to the front office after Hinkie and multiple coaching changes.

But when you think a little deeper about the last two decades of Sixers basketball, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a season more agonizing and tiresome than 2024-25. The Sixers entered this season with championship aspirations. An offseason overhaul from Daryl Morey resulted in the league’s top free agent last summer, Paul George, choosing to leave his hometown of Los Angeles and come across the country to Philadelphia. Caleb Martin had played a ton of playoff games with Miami and was viewed as a nice defensive addition and glue guy to a roster that needed to figure out how to win in the spring. Jared McCain made it to the Sixers’ pick outside of the lottery in last summer’s draft and at the very least was viewed as someone that could knock down some shots off the bench right away. Guerschon Yabusele had just won a second silver medal in the Olympics and was poised to return to the NBA after being let go by Boston in 2019, the team the Sixers and the rest of the NBA would have to conquer.

The offseason appeared to have the necessary ingredients to finally get the Sixers at least to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2001. There was a good blend of top-end additions, winning DNA, youth and high-upside short-term contracts to make you think this could all come together in a meaningful way and have the Sixers playing into June. Instead, the team fell flat on its face right out of the gate, starting 3-14. They have not recovered, and by now, I feel confident in saying they’re not going to. That’s one thing about the All-Star break that always got me. It’s commonplace for people to refer to the time after the break as the second half, and I understand why that happens, but there are only 28 games left now. It’s more like the final third.

The first two thirds of the season were not only rife with losses, but nonstop injury reports. Other than McCain, it felt like no one was ever ruled out for one significant stretch of time. Whenever Joel Embiid or George especially were sidelined, you knew it was likely an absence that would span multiple games, but the timeline remained ambiguous. It was always something the team would list as day-to-day, week-to-week or reevaluated in certain number of weeks. Their absences were multiple shorter absences rather than one longer period of inactivity.

This wasn’t limited to just Embiid and George too. Martin was in and out of the lineup as were several other veterans. The bottom line was, at around 5 p.m. on gameday you found out who was playing and who wasn’t playing. Those that cared enough would have no choice but to check the injury report again prior to the next game knowing it could have a ton of names on it or maybe for once it would be a lighter night of inactives. Unsurprisingly the Sixers used 33 different starting lineup combinations in the first 54 games of the season which led the NBA.

The more optimistic fan spent a good chunk of the season’s first three or four months holding out hope that maybe the team could catch a good break on the injury front and still become the formidable roster Morey envisioned. A school of thought seemed to emerge that the team would have to go through the likes of Cleveland and Boston at some point in the playoffs anyway so if they were to sneak in and play one of those teams in the first round, what difference would it make? Even as recently as the trade deadline Morey was telling fans to simply squint hard enough and they’d still be able to find a championship contender. I’m not sure how Morey feels today, but it sure feels like the “if they’re healthy…” contingent of the fanbase is shrinking. That’s because the Sixers entered the break losing games in embarrassing fashion against shorthanded opponents with Embiid, George and Maxey all on the floor. They’re now just 7-6 when all three play.

The tank train seems to be gaining passengers, but as someone who bought a ticket on said train a long time ago, I assure you this is not going to be a smooth ride. The majority of the losses in February have been by single digits, and some have had lots of lead changes. Even a 13-point loss to Detroit last week should have been by a much bigger margin but the Sixers made a rather pointless run in the second half to make that score look less embarrassing. My point is that even if you’re ready to throw in the towel on the season, they’re not about to start losing by significant margin to make that a simple venture. You’re going to be sweating out these games in fear of forfeiting a first-round pick in the back half of the top 10 and getting literally nothing out of this season.

It is quite possible that this season ends without a single silver lining. George looks washed. McCain winning the Rookie of the Year award would have been nice, but that’s long gone now. Martin never had the chance to change the culture of the locker room and is no longer a Sixer. Embiid might need another knee surgery. Maxey is seemingly dealing with his own knee injury now. Maybe they do end up with a half decent chance at retaining their first-round pick and the lottery is unforgiving. For as much as Yabusele seems to like Philadelphia, what if he leaves in free agency?

At least there were some moments during previous seasons in Embiid’s career that you could enjoy while they were happening even if the season ended in playoff disappointment. The illusion of hope existed. During The Process years, we all knew what was going on and no one in their right minds got their hopes up. Before that, the Sixers were a team trapped in the middle of the NBA and the team’s ceiling just wasn’t high enough even to tease its fans. But this season is one from hell. Everything that could go wrong, has gone wrong. The final game of the season, which is hopefully the 82nd game of the regular season and there is no play-in tournament to keep this nonsense going on any longer than it needs to go, will be when we can finally exhale. But for now, let’s enjoy the mental breather that is the All-Star break.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...ul-george-tyrese-maxey-daryl-morey-nick-nurse

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers convert Jared Butler’s two-way contract to two-year standard deal

Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

The Philadelphia 76ers are rewarding Jared Butler for an impressive first week as a Sixer by converting his two-way contract to a standard two-year NBA deal.

This feels like the closest thing to “positive news” we’ve gotten from the Sixers in a while.

Jared Butler has clearly made an impression on the Philadelphia front office in his first week as a Sixers, with the team converting his two-way contract into a standard two-year NBA contract.

we have signed @J_Hooper11 to a standard NBA deal. pic.twitter.com/xwWw8S1vFb

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) February 14, 2025​

Butler has been one of the few bright spots in what has been a rough last three games for the Sixers leading up to the All-Star break. Philadelphia acquired Butler just last week via a trade that sent Reggie Jackson and a 2026 first-round pick to the Washington Wizards in return for Butler and four second-rounders.

The last three contests were losses for the Sixers, but Butler integrated himself into the lineup seemingly instantly and was productive right out of the gate, averaging 10 points, 4.7 assists and 17.1 minutes in that stint. He had a great Wells Fargo Center debut to endear himself to the Philadelphia crowd this past Tuesday, putting up 15 points on 6-for-10 field goal shooting with four rebounds and four assists, all in under 16 minutes on the floor against the Toronto Raptors. By Wednesday night, he was a Sixers’ starter for the first time.

Jared Butler into double-digit scoring now with 11 points after this triple! pic.twitter.com/DXzEBAfdYw

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) February 12, 2025​

Butler’s two-year standard NBA contract will reportedly cover the rest of this season with a team option for next campaign, according to PhillyVoice’s Adam Aaronson.

Jared Butler’s two-year standard contract covers the rest of this season with a team option for 2025-26, source tells @thephillyvoice. This structure enables the Sixers to pick up the option for next season or decline it to try to come to terms with Butler on a longer-term deal.

— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) February 13, 2025​

In a corresponding move, the Sixers have waived Chuma Okeke. The 2019 first-rounder signed a 10-day contract immediately following the trade deadline. David Roddy is currently occupying the 15th and final roster spot while on a 10-day deal that he signed this past Tuesday.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...-butler-trade-contract-daryl-morey-nick-nurse

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Pumping the brakes on the Paul George doomerism

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Paul George’s Sixers tenure couldn’t be off to a worse start, but it may not be as bad as it looks.

It turns out not having the full use of all your fingers is detrimental to your ability to play basketball.

The Paul George experience in Philadelphia is not off to the best start. Only appearing in 35 of the first 54 games this season, PG’s stop-and-start season has been riddled with inconsistencies.

His 16.1 points per game, 42% field goal percentage and 36% three-point percentage are all just about the lowest marks since his rookie season. His 13.9 field goal attempts per game are the lowest in a full season they’ve been since his second year in the league.

His struggles really came to a head in the Sixers’ final game before the All-Star break. On a night where the Sixers were down Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, George scored just two points as they lost to the Brooklyn Nets 100-96. As the No. 1 option, he shot just 1-of-7 from the floor. He seemed so uncomfortable he passed up a shot that could have cut the lead to one point even as there was less than 10 seconds remaining.

After a five-game losing streak that puts them at a season-worst 14 games under .500, the fanbase has reached its breaking point. The night of the Brooklyn loss, several declarations were made that George isn’t even better than last not-actually-maximum-player making a max contract here, Tobias Harris.

George deserves his fair share of blame for the disaster this season has been. His inability to stay healthy has been just as frustrating as his inconsistent play when he’s taken the floor. While it’s been hard for him to string consecutive weeks together, there has been evidence that he’s still the player the Sixers thought they were getting when they gave him the four-year maximum contract last summer.

For starters, he is clearly still hampered by the torn tendon he suffered in his left pinky back on Jan. 25.

In the five games he’s played since returning from that injury, he’s averaging 12.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. All are notable decreases, even from his lower season averages.

When he first returned from the injury, he said that he has to keep that finger straight 24/7, a condition commonly known as mallet finger. He said that it was something he’d have to do for at least a few more weeks.

As he told reporters in Brooklyn after his two-point performance, it’s something that’s constantly on his mind while on the court.

“The pain pretty much went down, but little things like ball handling, catching it, going left at moments,” he said to the media, “there were a couple of plays tonight where it bobbled a little bit just because I was essentially playing like [with a bent finger] all game. So it’s frustrating, but it is what it is.”

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported after that Nets game that George has been receiving injections to get him through the past four or five games. That treatment isn’t something guys typically go to until the postseason.

"[Paul George was] brought over to move the needle. ... He's not doing that." @KendrickPerkins and @ShamsCharania on Paul George's recent struggles and the 20-34 Philadelphia 76ers. pic.twitter.com/iVJ5FMk2KR

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 13, 2025​

Not only is that still a bother, but he also said after that game that his groin injury is still lingering as well. For some reason, playing through multiple injuries seems to be a rite of passage for every Sixer this season.

It’s important to remember where he was before suffering that pinky injury. In the 16 games leading up it, he was averaging 18.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game, all a lot closer to his career marks.

Per Cleaning the Glass, lineups with Maxey and George on the floor together score 115.7 points per 100 possessions, posting an effective field goal percentage of 54.3%. Nothing crazy, but both of those numbers are comfortably above average.

Lineups with Embiid though, who’s only played in 17 games, have been more inconsistent. Groups with the two of George and Embiid are only scoring 104.1 per 100, with a 50.2 effective field goal percentage. Both of those marks however are well below average.

In another media availability during the five-game losing streak, George told reporters that playing next to Embiid has been harder than anticipated.

“He makes the game easy with just his presence and the attention that he draws, but it’s been a challenge, I won’t shy away from that one,” he told reporters, “Challenges, I look forward to them. So I’m going to embrace it and try to figure this out.”

George knows that the answer to this solution is just playing more games together, but as this season has shown, that is way easier said than done.

“A ton of it is through games. You guys see that we try to talk through games, talk through possessions,” he said, “But I’ve got to know his side of things. I’ve got to see what he sees, and vice versa. So we’re getting there. A little more work to do, but we’re getting there.”

Sixers have a 105.9 offensive rating with Jo on the floor and a 114.5 offensive rating with him off

In part, this is because PG is scoring 12.6 points per 36 with a 48% TS aside Jo

Without Jo, PG is scoring 21.8 per 36 with a 57% TS—virtually identical to his career averages

— Ben Detrick (@bdetrick) February 12, 2025​

Concerns that Embiid and George could never stay healthy long enough were valid, even before this season from hell, where they’ve only started and completed 10 games together. George has only hit the 60-game threshold once since he was on the Oklahoma City Thunder, and no one here needs to be reminded of everything that keeps Embiid off the court.

Even if the franchise wants to completely start over, they’ll have to rehab both of their value before doing so. As Brian Windhorst pointed out the other day on ESPN, Embiid is pretty much untradeable at the moment, due to his injury concerns and years left on his contract. George is in the same boat for pretty much the same reasons.

The Sixers may have to pull the plug on this experiment way quicker than anyone anticipated, but they’ll have to play out the string a little longer before they’re able to do so.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...nger-knee-nick-nurse-tyrese-maxey-joel-embiid

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Examining Paul George’s future in Philadelphia

Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

The veteran wing player has been extremely disappointing in his first season in the City of Brotherly Love. Despite trade rumors at the deadline, George remains a Sixer. So, what’s next?

It doesn’t seem as if rumors of Paul George being traded out of Philadelphia at the trade deadline were ever that serious. However, that they even existed at all goes to show how disastrous of a season 2024-25 has been for the Sixers.

At this point, it’s very unlikely anything turns around for the remainder of the current season for George, especially given he seems to still be nursing a pinky injury despite now being available for Nick Nurse to deploy. But, given the rumors were floating around last week, now feels like a good time to fast forward and look ahead to some possibilities for the Sixers and George heading into the offseason.

No changes to role​

This may disappoint a lot of Sixers fans, but if Daryl Morey remains in charge after this season, this is probably the most likely scenario for George entering 2025-26. Perhaps the biggest reason for the “run it back” approach with George is there was simply not enough continuity this year. In other words, there’s nothing to run back. This season was just a wash and Morey and company will cross their fingers that next season will be better. As painful as it sounds, there might not be an easier path to contention next season. It’s a harder sell to fans with George a year older because with how poorly George has played this year why would things get any better next season in what will be his age 35 season?

But if Morey is going to encourage fans to “squint hard enough” to see this team contending for a championship as he said in his post deadline presser, he’s certainly not going to nuke this roster. The Sixers seemed to be hanging on both sides of the fence at this deadline, shipping out a few veterans, but not other players like George, Eric Gordon, Kelly Oubre and Guerschon Yabusele. It signaled a desire on behalf of Morey to get younger, but keep enough of this core around to maybe still get into the playoffs this year and hope for better health next season. Morey still believes in this roster, as delusional as that sounds, and therefore is probably unwilling to admit the George contract was even a small mistake. In that case, we’ll be seeing a lot more of George next season.

Remains on the roster but loses minutes​

This season, George is averaging 32 minutes per game. That might seem like a lot, but Nick Nurse has a penchant for riding his starters into the ground. For example, Tyrese Maxey is averaging a career high 38 minutes per game, and Maxey’s previous career high was last year’s 37.5 minutes per game, which took place in Nurse’s first season in Philly. So perhaps the 32 minutes George is averaging would tell us that Nurse is not going to put him out there for close to 40 minutes a night if he doesn’t earn it.

Again, if George is this inefficient now, it’s hard to see his percentages improving next season when he’s a year older. The development of Justin Edwards and Ricky Council IV may have forced Morey’s hand a bit and accelerated the trade of Caleb Martin last week. A coach like Nurse who isn’t used to losing doesn’t seem like the kind of coach that would blindly play George solely because he received a max contract. If Edwards and Council are both back next season and continue to earn playing time, who’s to say those minutes wouldn’t come at George’s expense?

Traded​

The obvious caveat remains that if Morey is still the President of Basketball Operations, it would be a surprise to see George playing anywhere else next season. For what it’s worth, if the Sixers finish the season the way they started it and do not even qualify for the play-in tournament, I do think the Bob Myers rumors may heat up, but that’s a conversation for another day.

Let’s explore a few scenarios in which Morey sticks around and the Sixers still trade George in the summer.

Let’s start by going back to Nurse and the way he coaches. If Nurse does not believe George is a player that commands between 35 and 40 minutes a night, there’s an argument to be made that the Sixers are better off trading George. You might as well get off the contract if your coach isn’t going to play George the way he plays most of his starters, and certainly his star players, one of whom was supposed to be George. This kind of discussion between Morey and Nurse likely hasn’t happened during the season. By all indications, the Sixers seem to still want to sneak into the playoffs and see what happens. Therefore, Nurse is probably going about every day trying to figure out how to win the next game and not thinking about how much money George is making or what the team would look like if George was traded.

Tweaks like subtracting Reggie Jackson and Caleb Martin to bring in Quentin Grimes and Jared Butler are one thing, but a George trade would be a pretty seismic change to the rotation during the season. If Nurse is to explain to Morey in the offseason that he believes George’s best days are behind him, that they didn’t get what they thought they were getting and he won’t play George in a bigger, or even equal, role next season, a trade could become a possibility.

It’s also possible that the trade market wasn’t as big for George last week as it will be in the summer. Maybe Morey is willing to admit the signing was a mistake and would be open to trading the 15-year veteran. But generally speaking, these kinds of bigger trades do not happen during the season. This trade deadline was in many ways an anomaly with players like Luka Doncic and De’Aaron Fox getting moved. George is also considerably older and obviously not as good as Doncic and Fox so a team that’s willing to take on the rest of George’s contract would have to be willing to undergo a little bit of a roster makeover of its own. That kind of makeover is more likely to happen in an offseason. The deadline for the most part is meant to allow contenders to round out their starting lineups or figure out who their first two or three players off the bench will be and for lottery teams to get younger and add more picks.

The high frequency with which players move around in the offseason is something that many NBA fans enjoy. Not only will the Sixers have more time after the season to decide what they want to do with George, but every other team in the NBA will have more time to chart out its direction for 2025-26 and beyond. Those kinds of discussions happening in every front office could increase the market for George and present workable scenarios for a trade to happen. It seemed like only a couple teams were even rumored as possible fits for George at the deadline. But what if that number grows from anywhere to five to seven?

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...contract-joel-embiid-tyrese-maxey-daryl-morey

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

NBA All-Star Saturday Night Open Thread

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Let’s take a break from the Sixers and watch players who are excelling this year.

By and large, it has not been a fun year to follow professional basketball in the Philadelphia area. The Sixers bandwagon is a bumbling mess swerving all over the road with spare parts falling into the ditch at every turn. The ‘push for the 10-spot vs. tank for something like a 60 percent chance to keep their first-round pick’ debate is as heated as it is depressing. While being Super Bowl Champions was a worthy distraction for many of us, that time is unfortunately now in the past.

But for one weekend, we can enjoy NBA basketball, or at least something NBA basketball-adjacent, without thinking too much about the Sixers’ downfall. It’s NBA All-Star weekend! I would say for the majority of us, the Saturday night events are the most enjoyable part of the proceedings. Let’s take a look at what’s on tap for tonight.

1st event: Kia Skills Challenge

Team Cavs: Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley
Team Rookies: Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr
Team Spurs: Chris Paul, Victor Wembanyama
Team Warriors: Draymond Green, Moses Moody

The Skills Challenge is typically the least exciting of these events, buy any chance to see Wemby do something on a basketball court is reason enough to tune in.

2nd Event: Starry 3-Point Contest

Participants:
Jalen Brunson
Cade Cunningham
Darius Garland
Tyler Herro
Buddy Hield
Cameron Johnson
Damian Lillard
Norman Powell

Dame Lillard is the two-time defending champ and the odds-on favorite this year. I’ll be rooting for Villanova legend Jalen Brunson, with the chance to do so again in something other than a hated Knicks-specific context.

3rd Event: AT&T Slam Dunk

Participants:
Matas Buzelis (Chicago Bulls)
Stephon Castle (San Antonio Spurs)
Andre Jackson Jr. (Milwaukee Bucks)
Mac McClung (G League Osceola Magic)

This field is fine enough, I suppose, with a couple of rookies and a second-year guy in Jackson joining two-time defending champ McClung. Are you rooting for the former Sixers superstar to win his third straight or are you hoping to see some fresh blood take home the hardware?

Event details
When: Saturday, February 15, 8:00 pm ET
Where: Chase Center, San Francisco, CA
Watch: TNT, TruTV​

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...contest-three-point-shootout-skills-challenge

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Looking back on noteworthy Sixers moments from All-Star Weekend

Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images

There won’t be any new memories in 2025. So, let’s look back at some of the notable ones from the past.

All-Star weekend has gradually added events over the last seven decades. The All-Star game started in 1951. The Slam Dunk contest was first held in 1976. The three-point contest debuted in in 1986. The Rising Stars Challenge began in 1994 and the first skills challenge took place in 2003. We wanted to highlight some of the most notable moments involving Sixers on All-Star Weekend without any participating this weekend.

Allen Iverson ASG MVP (2001)​

In a year that saw the Sixers win just about every award, Iverson’s All-Star game honor was the least important, but perhaps a noteworthy precursor towards his MVP award just a few months later. “The Answer” finished with 25 points on 9-of-21 shooting and 1-of-1 from three-point land while adding five assists and four steals. Back then, the All-Star game final score actually looked like a normal game as the East defeated the West 111-110 on the heels of a huge fourth quarter.

All-Star Weekend in Philly (2002)​

It has been 23 years since All-Star Weekend came to the City of Brotherly Love. The most memorable moment from this weekend remains the chorus of boos Kobe Bryant was showered with upon receiving the game’s MVP award. This of course wasn’t without provocation as the Lower Merion graduate made the infamous “I’ll cut their heart out” line during the NBA Finals one year prior. Iverson and Dikembe Mutombo represented the Sixers on the team’s home floor in 2002. Other winners from the weekend included Jason Richardson as both the Rising Stars Challenge MVP and Slam Dunk Contest champion and Peja Stojakovic in the three-point contest.

Iguodala robbed in dunk contest (2006)​

Back when the dunk contest mattered, Nate Robinson edged out Andre Iguodala in overtime. Igudoala got a perfect 50 from the five judges on his second dunk. Robinson had become a crowd favorite in this event, most notably because of his smaller stature and one can only wonder if his popularity pushed him over the line. Liberty Ballers chronicled this calamity 10 years ago. The 2006 Slam Dunk Contest was the first to have a “Dunk Off” to determine the winner.

Mac McClung wins dunk contest (2023)​

The only thing McClung has on Julius Erving in his basketball career is that McClung won the dunk contest and Erving did not despite participating in 1984 and 1985. McClung would repeat in 2024 but was a member of the Orlando Magic organization by that point. He beat out Trey Murphy III, Jericho Sims and KJ Martin in 2023 to become the first Sixer to win the contest. Other players besides McClung, Iguodala and Erving that participated in the event as Sixers include Shelton Jones, Clarence Weatherspoon, Tim Perry, Jerry Stackhouse and Larry Hughes.

Players to participate in the three-point contest as Sixers are as follows:

Gerald Henderson (1989)

Hersey Hawkins (1991)

Dana Barros (1994 and 1995)

Allen Iverson (2000)

Kyle Korver (2004 and 2005)

No Sixer has ever won the three-point contest.

Players to participate in the skills contest as Sixers are as follows:

Jrue Holiday (2013)

Michael Carter-Williams (2014)**

Joel Embiid (2018)*

Tyrese Maxey (2024)

*Embiid was selected to participate in 2017 as well but missed All-Star Weekend with a knee injury.

**Michael Carter-Williams and Robert Covington were both chosen to participate in the 2015 skills contest but neither did as Carter-Williams was injured and Covington opted out.

Players to participate in the Rising Stars Challenge as Sixers are as follows:

Shawn Bradley (1994)

Sharone Wright (1995)

Jerry Stackhouse (1996)

Allen Iverson (1997)

Tim Thomas (1998)

Todd MacCulloch (2000)

Andre Iguodala and Kyle Korver (2005)

Andre Iguodala (2006)

Thaddeus Young (2009)

Jrue Holiday (2011)

Evan Turner (2012)

Michael Carter-Williams (2014 and 2015)

Nerlens Noel and Robert Covington (2015)

Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor (2016)

Joel Embiid, Dario Saric and Jahlil Okafor (2017)

Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Dario Saric (2018)

Ben Simmons (2019)

Tyrese Maxey (2022)

Mac McClung (2023)*

Jared McCain (2025)**

*G-League roster invitee

**Selected to play in game but could not participate due to meniscus injury

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...julius-erving-dr-j-andre-iguodala-kobe-bryant

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

2025 NBA All-Star Game Open Thread

Photo by Muhammed Ali Yigit/Anadolu via Getty Images

All-Star weekened comes to a close before we sadly have to start thinking about the Sixers again.

All-Star Saturday night has come and gone. We saw Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul hilariously but unsuccessfully try to game the system, Tyler Herro drain some jumpers for Heat Culture, and Mac McClung wow us once again in the dunk contest. I hope Adam Silver gave Mac an additional envelope of cash at the end of the night, because that guy is saving the NBA’s ratings bacon.

Now, we are onto the All-Star “Game,” which I’m placing in quotes because it’s actually a four-team mini-tournament this year, including a Rising Stars squad.

Chuck’s Global Stars:
Nikola Jokic
Trae Young
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Victor Wembanyama
Pascal Siakam
Alperen Sengun
Karl-Anthony Towns

vs. [8:20 pm]

Kenny’s Young Stars:
Anthony Edwards
Jalen Brunson
Jaren Jackson Jr.
Cade Cunningham
Darius Garland
Tyler Herro
Evan Mobley
Jalen Williams

&

Shaq’s OGs:
LeBron James
Stephen Curry
Kyrie Irving
Jayson Tatum
Kevin Durant
Damian Lillard
James Harden
Jaylen Brown

vs. [9:10 pm]

Candace’s Rising Stars:
Keyonte George
Stephon Castle
Jaylen Wells
Dalton Knecht
Zach Edey
Ryan Dunn
Trayce Jackson-Davis
Amen Thompson

I’m most curious to see how the Rising Stars come at the old guard and if the guys who usually don’t try much in this event respond in kind. The Game 1 winner will play the Game 2 winner at 10:00pm. Enjoy the final event of All-Star weekend and follow along in the comments!

Event details​

When: Sunday, February 16, 8:00 pm ET​

Where: Chase Center, San Francisco, CA​

Watch: TNT, TruTV​

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025/2/16/24366815/2025-nba-all-star-game-open-thread

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Report: Philadelphia will not be selected for 16th WNBA bid, still viewed as ‘frontrunners’

Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images

While they may not have been selected for the 16th bid, Philadelphia still seems to have a good chance at landing a WNBA team.

Well, it looks like the wait will have to go on even longer.

The WNBA is expected to award their newest franchise to Cleveland, as was reported by the Sports Business Journal. Though the official announcement isn’t expected until March, the report says this was a league record bid worth about $250 million, with the team expected to join the league in 2028. They will once again be called the Cleveland Rockers, the original WNBA team that folded there in 2003.

There’s still plenty of room for optimism as it’s also reported that the WNBA has “re-thought its original plan of adding just one team and could award one or two more franchises to bring its league total to 18 clubs.”

Philadelphia was mentioned as one of the presumed leaders for the 18th team, along with Houston, Nashville, Detroit and Miami.

It was reported that Houston was the “most-positioned” city for the 17th team, but that Philadelphia was also “another clear frontrunner,” citing Sixers’ ownership’s new partnership with Comcast for a new arena. A priority for that partnership was to house a WNBA team as well as the Sixers and Flyers.

At least ownership doesn’t seem to be waiting for the arena to be built to join the league. If Philadelphia wins that 18th bid, it sounds like the league wants to bring them in 2028 along with Cleveland, well before the new arena is planned to open.

The WNBA’s expansion has started to happen quite rapidly. The Golden State Valkyries will join the league as the 13th team this season, and Toronto and Portland will each join the league in 2026.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...nba-bid-viewed-frontrunners-cleveland-rockers

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Willie Burton’s off-court triumphs far surpass his magical 53-point night in Philly

Photo by Noren Trotman/NBAE via Getty Images

Willie Burton, the author of arguably the most surprising 50-point game in NBA history, has made it his life’s work to help those that struggle with addiction just as he has.

Where Willie Burton was concerned, nothing would ever compare to this. Really, what could? Just over 30 years ago, on Dec. 13, 1994, he scored 53 points in an NBA game.

Amid his lone season with the Sixers and a troubled time in his life, he stood with franchise royalty for that single night. Never again, though. He was the ultimate one-hit wonder, a fitting embodiment of a team that too often in its history has had only a nodding acquaintance with sustained success.

What you should know is that Willie Burton’s tale doesn’t begin and end there, even if our awareness of him does. That the guy who once wondered if he would see his 18th birthday is drawing ever nearer to his 57th, in May. That the guy who was once doubled-teamed by mental-health and substance-abuse issues has been clean and sober since July 7, 1997.

What you should know is that he has found other things in life that have in fact matched that night, when he torched his former team, the Miami Heat. That he has been stacking good days for a good long while now.

“From what he’s gone through, you can either go one way or the other,” said Keith Askins, his friend and former teammate with the Heat. “There’s no gray area between. There’s no gray when you take that life. For him to come out of it, and to be working and to be doing positive things in his community now … God bless Willie, man.”

Burton has talked often about how difficult it was growing up in Detroit. How the violence he saw left him deeply scarred. How he would go on to self-medicate, first with alcohol, then with other drugs. How that sidetracked his promising NBA career, and left him looking for answers he only belatedly found.

Now he has fully embraced the idea of taking one day at a time. Now he serves as an assistant professor in the kinesiology department at the University of Minnesota, his alma mater. He is also working toward his doctorate, while at the same time making it his goal to help others avoid some of his missteps.

To that end he counsels young people through his association with an organization called Excel U., which he describes as “a catalogue of programs designed to help student-athletes and the adults who guide them.” He speaks to various groups, goes the extra mile. In January alone he appeared at a Martin Luther King Day celebration at a St. Paul rec center and participated in a seminar called “The Power of Wellness and Leadership.”

“To put it in a nutshell, I’m returning the favor,” he said in a recent phone interview. “I’m offering what was given to me. That’s what my life is about. … Basketball was my gift. I was very talented. That was a gift. Now what is my life’s purpose? To do what I’m doing now.”

So understand this: He was never known for his rebounding as a player. But in life? Totally different story.

In a 2021 video he said he underwent “a seven-year growth process of self-awareness and self-discovery” encompassing the bulk of his NBA career. John Lucas, who coached Burton in Philadelphia during that 1994-95 season and is a recovering addict himself, chuckled when he was informed of that.

“That sounds like him today,” he said. “Right out (of) the book now”

At the same time Lucas is gratified to see how far Burton has come. He said he is proud of him, that indeed he has felt that way for some two decades now.

“For me, it wasn’t about basketball,” Lucas said. “It was about his life.”

For a long time they were entwined. Burton won two Michigan state titles in high school, then scored exactly 1,800 points at Minnesota, a total that remains third in school history. He also had his No. 34 retired. The Heat made him the ninth pick of the 1990 draft, and the 6-foot-8 wing showed great promise as an instant-offense guy his first two seasons.

Then the spiral began. He had begun drinking when he was 14 or 15, he said, but managed to keep himself squared away in college. The NBA is a different animal, though. Players are suddenly presented with more money and free time than they know what to do with. And in his case, that led to his drinking morphing into something more, something worse.

“I used to mix marijuana, cocaine,” he said. “I had some of everything — hash. Everything but heroin, because I saw what heroin did to people. So I caught myself staying away from something that would destroy me, when all the other stuff was just destroying me slower.”

After four seasons the Heat cut him in November 1994, and he was signed almost immediately by the Sixers. Lucas was new to the job, and appeared to be as concerned with saving souls as winning games. Once a star point guard who was taken atop the 1976 draft, he had battled addiction throughout his playing career, and would later open a rehab facility in Houston (which remains in operation to this day).

Lucas turned the Sixers into something of a halfway house, for Burton and others. And on that night in December 1994, the player who might have become a statistic came to be known for one.

His 53 points in the Sixers’ 105-90 victory over the Heat were a Spectrum record — one that will forever stand, since that building no longer does. It also equals the 11th-highest total in franchise history. Burton shares that rung in the ladder with Joel Embiid, Allen Iverson and Wilt Chamberlain.

He clings to that night, knowing it was the exception and not the rule. Knowing what might have been, were it not for his many issues. Excluding active players, no one who has notched 50 or more points in a game finished with a lower career total than Burton’s 3,243.

Explains why he had a ring made for himself a few years ago, commemorating that occasion.

“I left a mark in the game of basketball that will always be there,” he said.

And yet …

“Sometimes I have feelings that I could have been a much better player,” he said. “I could have been an All-Star. I could have had multiple All-Star Game appearances.”

His career average was a modest 10.3 points a game, and he appeared in just 316 games in the course of his eight seasons — including 40 over his last three, when he hopscotched from Atlanta to San Antonio to Charlotte. Then he played overseas and in the minor leagues through 2004.

Burton’s big night in December 1994 represented a small side trip amid his longer journey toward sobriety. And certainly when examined strictly in a basketball sense, the game came out of nowhere. To that point in his NBA career Burton had never scored more than 28 points in a game, and he would never score more than 33 afterward.

He put up just 19 shots from the floor, making 12; only Utah’s Adrian Dantley has ever attempted fewer field goals in a 50-point game, having needed 17 in 1980. (Kyrie Irving also had 19 in a 50-pointer for Brooklyn in 2022.)

Burton, 5-for-8 from 3-point range and a staggering 24-for-28 from the foul line that night, has always insisted that he didn’t view it as a revenge game. Lucas believes otherwise. So too does Askins, who remembered Burton looking over at the Miami bench once he got rolling and engaging in various “antics.”

But Burton had faced the Heat on two earlier occasions that season, scoring 13 points the first time and 19 the second. This was something special, the ultimate one-off.

“He was probably the best player in the Association that night,” said Askins, now a scout for the Heat.

Burton started that game at guard with Dana Barros and as part of a quintet that also included Clarence Weatherspoon, Scott Williams and Shawn Bradley. It was a team destined to finish 24-58, but it was immediately apparent this would be something more than your average humdrum affair.

Burton nailed a three-pointer from the right corner on the Sixers’ second possession, then another three-ball moments later. He notched 13 of Philadelphia’s first 15 points, and finished the first quarter with 18. By halftime he had 29, and after three quarters he had 38.

“We had one certain play for him that we ran, I guess, 40 times that game,” Lucas said — i.e., a flare screen to get Burton into a pick-and-roll.

The idea, Lucas said with a laugh, was “to get to his right hand, because disaster was coming in that left hand.”

Askins remembers Burton’s game being more complete than that — that he could go either way, and score on all three levels.

“Willie had the body, athleticism,” Askins said. “He had big hands, and he had confidence. … He would definitely be what you would consider a tough cover.”

There is an element of mystery to that game, in that there were those in the arena that night who believe the Heat players were only too happy to help Burton breach the 50-point mark. And certainly the official play-by-play would suggest as much. Burton shot no fewer than 16 free throws in the fourth quarter alone, making 13. He managed a single field goal in that period.

Askins, for his part, entered the game for the first time at the start of the fourth, and in 11 minutes was whistled for five personals — at least the last four against Burton; it’s not clear from the play-by-play sheet who he tagged on his first foul. He also drew a technical. Burton converted those transgressions into seven points.

Burton nonetheless insists that he did not have any extra help in achieving his milestone.

“No professional player would ever do that,” he said. “They were trying to stop me. That’s why they were fouling me so much. They all like me, but they don’t like me that much.”

Askins, however, stopped short of a denial.

“I don’t know, because we did have some guys that grew up with him in the Detroit area, so maybe they did help him a little bit,” he said, an apparent reference to guys like John Salley and Glen Rice, neither of whom could be reached for this piece.

“But like I said,” Askins added, “Willie was doing his thing that night. If you didn’t foul him, he was going to score anyway. I think those fouls were probably out of context of making him earn it at the line, without embarrassing you — like, giving you some stepback or finishing over you at the rim.”

Whatever the case, it was a personal highlight without equal for Burton, and a triumph over himself.

“It’s a matter of (whether) he can keep that canary on his shoulder settled,” Lucas told the Philadelphia Daily News at the time. “Tonight, it had plenty of birdseed.”

Reminded of that recently, Lucas chuckled again.

“That canary would get off his perch at any minute,” he said. “He had to try and keep that canary on his perch.”

That has proven to be a life-long chore. In his public appearances these days Burton often mentions the violence that enveloped him at an early age in Detroit. Specifically, there was a shooting he witnessed at age 5, as he and a cousin walked to a store, and a stabbing he saw a few years later, as a result of a dispute over a dice game.

“That was, maybe, three percent of what I actually saw,” he said. “I’ve had guns put to my head growing up. I’ve had real life-and-death situations.”

The experiences took their toll on him. In fact, he said he suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of all he saw, which in turn led to his substance abuse. During his pro career he was in and out of rehab, at Lucas’ facility and others. He sought the counsel of Dr. Lloyd Baccus, who before his death in 2006 headed the NBA’s Player Assistance Program. And finally, in the summer of 1997, Burton got himself squared away.

“I never accepted that I had mental issues, and I never realized that me drinking and doing drugs was my coping mechanism,” he said. “I had to accept that. I had to accept that there was something wrong with me, with seeing people getting shot and stabbed and all the violence growing up as a kid.”

Clean and sober since that July day in 1997, he saw his playing career meander to an end seven years later, in Lebanon. He earned his undergraduate degree, in multidisciplinary studies, in 2013, his masters in sports administration seven years later. He hopes to earn his PhD in sports exercise and psychology this year.

“Basically what I’ve committed my life to,” he said, “is the things I’ve gone through.”

Helping others avoid following the same path. Helping them understand that better things are possible. That the number of great days need not be confined to one.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...rs-50-point-game-heat-john-lucas-keith-askins

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Ricky Council IV celebrates high school jersey retirement during All-Star break

Ricky Council IV beside South Durham head coach Greg Motley. | Rhianna Council (@ballin_beauty10) / Instagram

One 76er enjoyed their All-Star break in jubilant fashion in their hometown.

The Philadelphia 76ers took it easy during the All-Star break, with one member having a pretty special moment in his hometown.

On Monday, Sixers young wing Ricky Council IV received an honorary jersey retirement from the Southern School of Energy and Sustainability, also known as Southern Durham High School, in his hometown of Durham, N.C.

During his senior year, Council averaged 23 points, 9.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game leading his school to the fourth round of the state playoffs, and earning him Third Team All-State honors in North Carolina.

Council would commit to play for Wichita State University after graduating, declining offers from Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Hofstra, Rice and Siena College.

The raw athleticism and finishing ability that we see flashes of almost every time he steps on the court for the Sixers were evident for Council during high school.

Even more prevalent was the unwavering confidence in himself. Whether it be the celebrations after a dunk, ability to get a shot off from anywhere on the court, or the sneaky speed he showcases during fastbreak opportunities, it is safe to say Council was a problem for any team facing Southern Durham during the 2019-20 winter season.

The fitting No. 4 jersey was forever enshrined in South Durham basketball history on Monday, with Council’s family and friends there to celebrate with him.

Ricky Council IV got his high school jersey retired yesterday: pic.twitter.com/NKwunS3k3X

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) February 18, 2025​

Council shared photos through his Instagram story, including flicks with the varsity head coach, Greg Motley, and four-star Butler University commit Jackson Keith.

In his 46 games for the Sixers this season, Council IV is averaging 6.2 points per game on 41% shooting and 30% from deep.

For more on his journey to the NBA, click here.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...chool-jersey-retirement-sixers-all-star-break

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Reevaluating all of the Sixers’ 2024 offseason moves

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Knowing what we know now, what would the Sixers have done differently this past offseason?

In retrospect, we all should have expected this Sixers season from hell. The vibes were too immaculate all offseason. The pendulum was destined to swing back the other way at some point.

The Sixers entered the offseason with $60-plus million of salary-cap space thanks to their decision not to sign Tyrese Maxey to an extension in 2023. They wound up spending that on Paul George, Caleb Martin and Andre Drummond before re-signing Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr. and handing out minimum contracts to Eric Gordon, Kyle Lowry, Guerschon Yabusele and Reggie Jackson. They finished their busy offseason by signing Joel Embiid to a three-year, $192.9 million max contract extension in September.

Now that we’ve reached the All-Star break, we have the benefit of a half-season of hindsight to revaluate the Sixers’ offseason moves. While it initially looked like the Sixers had a home run of a summer — they were routinely mentioned among the offseason’s biggest winners — many of those moves haven’t panned out quite as expected.

The draft​

Jared McCain (No. 16 overall pick): McCain was perhaps the Sixers’ biggest hit of the offseason from a value perspective. The Duke product was expected to be on the fringes of the rotation as a rookie, but injuries gave him an opportunity early in the season, and he took off running with it.

Prior to suffering a season-ending meniscus tear, McCain was the clear Rookie of the Year favorite. He averaged 15.3 points in only 25.7 minutes per game across 23 appearances while shooting 46.0 percent overall and 38.3 percent from deep. He’s also one of only four Sixers rookies ever to score 20-plus points in seven straight games, along with Embiid, Allen Iverson and Jerry Stackhouse. Not bad for someone who wasn’t even drafted in the lottery!

Adem Bona (No. 41 overall pick): Bona figured to spend most of his rookie season shuttling between the G League and the NBA, but injuries to Embiid and Drummond have given him a relatively consistent role over the past month. He’s still raw and foul-prone, much like many rookie bigs, but he’s far springier and more explosive than Drummond.

Regardless of what happens with Drummond this offseason, the Sixers likely won’t want to rely on a 22-year-old as their primary backup to the oft-injured Embiid. However, they’d be wise to continue developing Bona as their third-string center.

Undrafted free agents (Justin Edwards, Jeff Dowtin Jr., David Jones): The Sixers’ original UDFA signings were a mixed bag. Jones didn’t even make it out of training camp, and the 27-year-old Dowtin has played sparingly. The good news is that Edwards, the No. 3 overall prospect from the 2023 recruiting class, made such a positive impression over the past few weeks that he recently earned himself a standard contract.

Free agency​

Tyrese Maxey (five years, $203.9 million): Signing Maxey to a five-year max deal was the Sixers’ biggest no-brainer of the offseason. He was fresh off his first All-Star nod and winning the Most Improved Player award in 2023-24. They had to reward him for holding off on his extension in 2023, which gave them enough cap space to sign someone to a max contract this past summer.

While Maxey got off to a slow start this year, he went supernova in January. Prior to his dud against the Toronto Raptors right before the All-Star break, he scored 25-plus points in 18 straight games. He’s one of only three players in Sixers history to have done that, joining Embiid and Iverson.

No matter what happens with Embiid and George from here, the Sixers are in good hands with Maxey moving forward.

Paul George (four years, $211.6 million): When the Sixers pried George away from the Los Angeles Clippers, it was arguably their biggest free-agent coup in franchise history. On paper, he was the perfect complement to Maxey and Embiid. That hasn’t quite played out as expected thus far, though.

Injuries have largely been to blame for that. George suffered a pair of bone bruises early in the season that caused him to get off to a slow start, and he’s recently been hampered by a torn tendon in his finger. He’s still a far better defender than Tobias Harris, but his 16.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game are otherwise giving major Tobias 2.0 vibes.

The Sixers can only hope that injuries are the main reason for his nosedive in productiveness, not age. Otherwise, what once looked like the final missing piece to their championship puzzle — their own version of Saquon Barkley — could turn into a franchise-strangling albatross.

Caleb Martin (four years, $35.0 million): At the time, Martin looked like another offseason steal for the Sixers. After all, he reportedly turned down a five-year, $65 million extension offer from the Miami Heat to test free agency, which backfired when he had to settle for $30 million less. Martin was a key piece of the Heat team that made it to the 2023 NBA Finals, so his playoff experience made him appealing to a team that routinely collapses in the conference semifinals.

However, the Sixers signed Martin to be a low-usage, three-and-D gap-filler alongside their Big 3. He wasn’t able to scale up like Maxey or Oubre with George and Embiid shuffling in and out of the lineup all year. Hip and shoulder injuries also caused him to miss 17 games during his brief Sixers tenure.

The Sixers cut bait on Martin at the trade deadline, sending him to the Dallas Mavericks for Quentin Grimes and their own 2025 second-round pick back. They later had to amend the trade and include a 2030 second-round pick because he got red-flagged during his physical.

The last thing the Sixers need is to build around more damaged goods — they already have plenty of that with Embiid and George! — and the early returns on Grimes are promising. But this signing clearly did not pan out as expected.

Andre Drummond (two years, $10.0 million): Drummond became a fan favorite during his first half-season stint in Philly back in 2021-22, as he was the best backup to Embiid that the Sixers ever had. That hasn’t been the case this time around. He’s had to start more games than expected because of Embiid’s injuries, but he’s been largely ineffective on both offense and defense.

Drummond is still an elite rebounder, and it won’t be the end of the world if he picks up his $5.0 million player option in 2025-26. The Sixers could benefit from having a few non-minimum contracts to use for salary-matching in trades, after all. However, his presence on the roster has been more of a negative than a positive this year.

Kelly Oubre Jr. (two years, $16.4 million): Oubre was the steal of the 2023 offseason for the Sixers, who signed him to a one-year, minimum-salary deal in late September. After he averaged 15.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while starting in 52 of his 68 appearances in 2023-24, it was fair to wonder whether he had priced himself out of Philly, particularly if the Sixers went big-game hunting in free agency. Instead, they managed to sign him to a 1+1 deal using their room mid-level exception.

While the Sixers at large have been a glaring disappointment this year, Oubre is one of the only players who hasn’t completely embarrassed himself. He’s attacking the glass with fervor and is averaging a career-high 6.5 rebounds per game, although his 28.8 percent clip from deep is a legitimate concern moving forward. Still, the Sixers should look to leverage their Early Bird rights on Oubre this coming summer to re-sign him if he opts out.

KJ Martin (two years, $16.0 million): Martin’s two-year, $16 million balloon deal seemed to be specifically designed for salary-matching purposes in a trade. They figured to package him with a draft pick or two and land another rotation player to round out what they hoped to be a championship-caliber supporting cast.

Instead, the Sixers spent two second-round picks to salary-dump Martin at the trade deadline so they could get under the luxury-tax threshold. It was an egregious waste of both picks and Martin’s contract from a trade perspective. This could have been a home run signing — a sneaky loophole to bypass the restrictions that apron teams face — but it was instead yet another wasted opportunity in a season full of them.

Eric Gordon (two years, $6.8 million): Gordon got off to a dismal start this season, raising concerns about whether he was yet another washed vet a la Paul Millsap, DeAndre Jordan, etc. He averaged only 5.0 points while shooting 36.0 percent overall and 27.5 percent from deep across his first 19 games with the Sixers. However, he turned his season around after undergoing oral surgery in late December. Across the month of January, Gordon averaged 9.8 points while shooting 52.0 percent overall and 52.6 percent from deep across 17 games (12 starts).

To some extent, it’s surprising that the Sixers didn’t look to cash in on Gordon at the trade deadline. But if the post-oral-surgery version of Gordon is here to stay, the Sixers might want to keep him around next season regardless of whether he picks up his $3.5 million player option for 2025-26.

Kyle Lowry (one year, $3.3 million): Lowry wound up playing a surprisingly big role for the Sixers last season after they signed him off the buyout market, so it was no surprise that both sides were interested in a reunion this year. However, Nick Nurse told reporters at media day that he didn’t envision Lowry playing as much this season as he did last year.

Lowry is averaging only 18.9 minutes per game, the fewest since his rookie season, and he’s scoring a career-low 4.0 points per game while shooting a career-worst 35.1 percent from the field. Combine that with a nagging hip injury, and Lowry isn’t providing much on-court value this year. He’s basically the Sixers’ version of Udonis Haslem at this point of his career.

Reggie Jackson (one year, $3.3 million): In theory, Jackson seemed like a low-risk, medium-upside signing. He figured to compete with Lowry for backup point guard minutes behind Maxey after spending the past year-and-a-half backing up Jamal Murray on the Denver Nuggets. His longstanding friendship with Paul George didn’t hurt, either.

You know what did hurt? The 4.4 points that he averaged per game while shooting only 39.1 percent from the field. The Sixers wound up cutting bait on Jackson at the trade deadline, shipping him with a late 2026 first-round pick to the Washington Wizards for Jared Butler and four second-round picks. That might help salvage the Jackson signing from being a total loss.

Guerschon Yabusele (one year, $2.1 million): We saved the best for last. Much like with Oubre in 2023, the Sixers’ relatively unheralded late-summer signing this past offseason wound up being their biggest free-agency steal. Yabusele flamed out of the NBA after only two years with the Boston Celtics, but he’s making the best of his opportunity this time around.

With Embiid and Drummond in and out of the lineup all year, Yabusele has already started 27 games as a small-ball center or as a 4 next to Embiid. He’s averaging 11.1 points and 5.5 rebounds in only 26.6 minutes per game while shooting 51.6 percent overall and 40.1 percent from deep. Team president Daryl Morey all but admitted that the Sixers’ cost-cutting at the trade deadline was done in part to free up more flexibility to re-sign Yabusele this offseason.

Extensions​

Joel Embiid (three years, $192.9 million): The Sixers had until Oct. 21 to sign Embiid to an extension this season. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been eligible for a new deal until this coming summer, which could have been a contract year for him. Rather than risk having him decline his $59.0 million player option to become an unrestricted free agent in 2026, the Sixers gave him a three-year max extension to ensure he’d be under contract through 2027-28.

Morey said the Sixers consulted upward of a dozen doctors before making that commitment, but the early returns have not been promising. Embiid has been dealing with unpredictable knee swelling that has already caused him to miss 30-plus games this season. Both Morey and Embiid have expressed optimism that his knee will continue to improve as he gets further removed from his knee surgery, but Embiid also recently hinted that he might need another surgery.

If that knee continues to plague Embiid next season and beyond, that will likely spell the end for this era of the Sixers. No pressure.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Salary Swish and salary-cap information via RealGM.

Follow Bryan on Bluesky.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...l-george-joel-embiid-tyrese-maxey-daryl-morey

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers to honor late Dikembe Mutombo vs. Celtics

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

The Sixers will honor their late member of their 2001 Finals team with a tribute and a gift to his family

This is more than well-deserved.

The Sixers announced that they would be honoring the late Dikembe Mutombo on their Feb. 20 matchup against the Boston Celtics. Mutombo passed away after a battle with brain cancer in September 2024.

He spent a year and a half with the Sixers after being acquired at the trade deadline for Theo Ratliff in the midst of their 2000-01 season. He finished out that season bringing home the Defensive Players of the Year award as the Sixers made a run to the NBA Finals. The next year he averaged 11.5 points and 2.4 blocks per game for Philadelphia as he made the All-Star team and won his second straight DPOY award. He went on to become renown for his humanitarian work in his post-playing career.

“The celebration will highlight his time as a key member of the last 76ers team to make the NBA Finals, but more importantly, his impact off the court as a humanitarian and global ambassador,” the Sixers said in a release.

The first 5,000 fans in attendance for that game against the Celtics will receive a Mutombo foam finger. His family will ring the bell pregame, the Sixers’ players will wear warmup shirts that say, “DM55,” and some of his Sixers’ teammates will be in attendance as well.

Not only will they be honoring Mutombo that night, but they are also welcoming his family to their practice facility the following day. The team will present to them a custom painting of Mutombo.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025/2/19/24368881/sixers-honor-late-dikembe-mutombo-boston-celtics

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers kick off final stretch of the season vs. Boston Celtics

Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

The Sixers are running out of time to make a push for the playoffs and they start the second half off with a familiar and difficult opponent.

The Philadelphia 76ers are set to kick off the final stretch of the regular season, coming off a forgettable pre-All-Star break. Their first test? A showdown with their longtime rivals, the Boston Celtics.

The last two matchups between these teams had very different outcomes. On Christmas Day, the Sixers secured one of their biggest wins of the season, defeating Boston 118-114. However, in their most recent meeting, Philadelphia led for most of the game before collapsing and blowing a double-digit lead. Since then, things have only gotten worse. The Sixers have struggled with inconsistency, and a five-game losing streak has sent them spiraling out of the playoff race.

To snap this skid, the Sixers will need several factors to work in their favor — starting with their health. Injuries remain a key concern. Tyrese Maxey missed the final game before the break with a knee contusion, while Paul George has been in a serious slump, coming off one of his worst performances in recent memory. If the Sixers hope to turn things around, George must be more aggressive and knock down perimeter shots despite dealing with his extensor tendon injury in his left pinky finger.

The good news? The team’s overall health appears to be improving. Head coach Nick Nurse confirmed that everyone except Jared McCain, Kyle Lowry, Eric Gordon and Justin Edwards participated in early-week practice. However, Lonnie Walker IV is not yet officially part of the team, so don’t expect him to be available for this matchup.

As for the Celtics, they’ve lived up to the preseason hype, establishing themselves as one of the NBA’s true juggernauts. Led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, both playing at an All-Star level, Boston boasts a deep, well-rounded roster featuring Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Kristaps Porziņģis and Payton Pritchard.

Right now, the Celtics rank in the top five in both offensive and defensive rating, showcasing their dominance on both ends of the floor. The Sixers, meanwhile, have struggled in both areas, sitting with the eighth-worst offense and ninth-worst defense in the league.

With the Sixers desperate to stay in the playoff race and the Celtics continuing to dominate, this matchup is shaping up to be a pivotal one for Philadelphia. Can they recapture their Christmas magic, or will Boston hand them yet another tough loss?

Game details​

When: Thursday, Feb. 20, 7:00pm ET

Where: The Center, Philadelphia, PA

Watch: TNT

Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic

Follow: @LibertyBallers

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/2025...y-report-joel-embiid-paul-george-tyrese-maxey