News 76ers Team Notes

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers Bell Ringer: Sixers show a little fight but fall short in Cleveland

2025-2026 Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:

Tyrese Maxey – 3

Adem Bona – 1

VJ Edgecombe – 1

Quentin Grimes – 1

Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1

---

The Sixers put up a valiant effort in their 132- 121 defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, the second night of a road back to back.

Early on in the first quarter you could tell the Sixers were feeling the wear and tear, as the Cavaliers jumped out to a 17-5 lead. From that moment on, the two teams would exchange runs, bringing the Sixers close to taking the lead, but then the Cavaliers reorganizing to expand their lead on the undermanned opponent.

The Sixers entered the game without the services of Joel Embiid (rest), Jared McCain (rest), Paul George (knee) and Dominick Barlow (elbow). The Cavaliers entered the game without De’Andre Hunter (illness) and Max Strus (foot).

Let’s see who stood out in the Sixers’ second straight loss.

Tyrese Maxey: 27 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 steal. 10-of-20 FG, 2-of-5 3PT

Maxey came into Wednesday’s matchup against the Cavaliers on the heels of a 39-point night in Chicago. He appeared fatigued out of the gate, leaving shots short and missing free throw attempts.

After the Sixers’ reserves provided some energy in his absence, Maxey came off the bench rejuvenated in his second stint. He was able to get downhill and drive the paint effectively, and his shots started falling from downtown. He was responsible for 16 of the last 18 points the team scored in the half, bringing the Cavaliers deficit down to just three at halftime.

Maxey is up to 16 points after this long triple and the Sixers have clawed their way right back into this one! pic.twitter.com/Jz8dQ7Nqfc

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

Unfortunately, the tank may have ran dry for the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week, as he shot 2-of-7 in the third quarter and took only two shot attempts in the fourth.

Andre Drummond: 13 points, 13 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 steal, 1 assist

Drummond was critical in slowing down Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen in the first quarter with his size and rebounding prowess. His veteran experience in the paint aided the Sixers in keeping the game competitive in the first half. His paint presence and active hands helped disrupt interior opportunities the Cavaliers were getting extremely easily early on.

He was felt on the boards on both sides, but was emphasized by a put-back slam off of a Oubre Jr. miss. His back-to-back defensive plays in the paint early on in the third quarter were crucial in preventing a disastrous third quarter from being even uglier. He was rewarded with a corner three, which he drained.

ANDRE DRUMMOND THREE-POINTER ALERT pic.twitter.com/bNbUO2p285

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

Trendon Watford: 16 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals

Watford was the lifeline the Sixers were looking for in the second quarter, providing instant energy and offense when the starters looked cold to start. He filled it up offensively in the quarter, making four of his six attempts and dropping three dimes.

Trendon Watford is hoopin! pic.twitter.com/YKDz4zprg8

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

His defense was very solid as he nabbed a couple steals, but it was worth noting he appeared a little bit fatigued in the third quarter. This was only his fifth game after missing the first three contests of the season.

Quentin Grimes: 27 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds, 9-of-15 FG, 1-of-5 3PT

Grimes’ offensive night was relatively quiet, as he did not make a three until the fourth quarter. But he was there every time the Sixers needed a bucket to break a Cavaliers run, or to inch back in the game.

Quentin Grimes with the strong finish at the rim to try to tamp down the Cavs Q3 run. pic.twitter.com/la5oMoMsmA

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

His effective shooting in the second half provided the Sixers one last chance late, as they cut the Cleveland lead down to nine with a minute left.

His effort and efficiency tonight were the embodiment of the energy we have seen from the Sixers guards so far this season, and it was refreshing to see in a game that felt over on multiple occasions.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...-ringer-strong-fight-falls-short-in-cleveland

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Paul George needs to be more than an expensive role player when he returns

As frustrating as Tuesday night might have been for Sixers fans, and as disappointing as it is to drop both games of a back-to-back, Philly is off to about as good a start as fans could have asked for. The Sixers return home at 5-3, with a couple of those wins coming over Boston and Orlando, playoff teams from last season.

While we don’t have an official return date for Paul George, the veteran wing seems to be progressing well and could be back as soon as the weekend when the team returns to Xfinity Mobile Arena for a back-to-back against Toronto and Detroit. A narrative appears to be emerging that while the youth movement has certainly given fans reason to be optimistic, George can still help the team in a smaller role.

I’m not writing this to disagree with that sentiment. There’s certainly a world in which George plays a 3-and-D role well enough for Nick Nurse to start him on a regular basis and for the Sixers to continue winning games with George playing that role. But I am writing this to implore every Sixers fan not to treat that kind of season from George as a success. Are we really about to stoop to the level of treating Paul George the same as Rockets fans probably treated Trevor Ariza while they were contending a decade ago?

That’s not to say George should look like an All-NBA performer during his season debut. It will take time for him to integrate into what the Sixers are doing and to get right physically. But once he’s up to speed, the franchise and fanbase should demand more of him than being a role player.

George is 35 years old and turns 36 in early May, a time when we’d all love for the Sixers to still be playing basketball. As you all know by now, George remains under contract in Philadelphia for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons. His contract figures to be difficult to move. When George signed in Philadelphia, the thought process seemed to be that the Sixers had no choice but to pursue George, the best free agent of a bad crop in the summer of 2024, to walk right into the cap space vacated by the expiring contract of Tobias Harris.

Anytime you operate out of desperation, which is essentially the spot Daryl Morey and company were in entering the 2024 season with few max-level alternatives to George, you’re probably going to be a ripe target for agents. Sure enough, George’s representatives secured one last big contract for him and he is now signed into his late 30s. Once George put pen to paper, most Sixers fans were probably realistically hoping for two more All-Star caliber seasons from George and, had that happened, they’d be willing to live with him deteriorating in the final two seasons of the four-year deal.

I’m not sure what to call 2024-25 for George, but it certainly wasn’t an All-Star caliber season. So, now, just because the Sixers have some exciting young players who appear to be maturing and giving some hope for this season, we’re going to recalibrate our expectations for George when he does step on the floor?

The only way anyone should be happy with George taking on a lesser role this season is if he’s willing to give about 65% of his salary for the season back to the Sixers. When that doesn’t happen, just realize that you’re willfully accepting George becoming one of the most expensive role players in NBA history. In a sports town as intense and hard on its stars as Philly is, that doesn’t seem to be a hallmark of the fanbase’s identity.

Even in the event that George does have success in whatever role is there for him this season, everyone is likely going to be hoping the team can shed the final two years of his contract next summer — and rightfully so. When you’re on the contract George is on, it’s not OK to experience a wide range of performance outcomes. If Kelly Oubre is the best player on the floor for Philadelphia one night and then goes 0-for-8 from three the next night, that’s one thing. On some nights, Adem Bona will look like a tenacious defensive anchor and rack up the blocks, and on other nights, Bona will look like a G-Leaguer. This is acceptable for these kinds of players given the financial commitment being made to them.

There is not a similar acceptable performance from George this season. The standard should be just as high as it was when he showed up in Philly. If that’s not met in 2025-26, this season will simply be another negative mark on an already ugly era for Paul George as a Philadelphia 76er.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...than-an-expensive-role-player-when-he-returns

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

After missed opportunity in Chicago, Sixers get crushed by Cavs

Yeah, really needed to win the one the day before.

The Sixers, on the second night of a back to back, fell 132-121 to a Cleveland Cavaliers team that had all four stars available for the first time this season Wednesday night.

Tyrese Maxey had some brilliant moments that briefly made this game close, and finished with 27 on 10-of-20 shooting — and somehow still playing well into the fourth quarter despite a 20-point deficit. Quentin Grimes got going late in the game to finish with 27 as well, going 9-of-15 from the field.

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VJ Edgecombe had his toughest game to date, finishing with four points going 2-of-13 from the floor along with four rebounds and four assists.

Trendon Watford had 16 while Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with 46.

Here are some thoughts mostly before the buzzer.

First Quarter​

• Here’s just a summary of the Sixers turnovers in the opening minutes of the game: Adem Bona didn’t see a quick pass coming to him on the block and just let it hit off his chest. Then he and Maxey were a little too careless crossing half-court and caused a backcourt violation. Capping things off was another sloppy outlet giving the ball up right in front of their own basket. Cleveland was able to jump out to a double-digit lead in no time.
• It also wasn’t a good sign to see them give up three offensive rebounds on the same possession while sitting in a 2-3 zone. For as much as the Cavs shot that zone to death, making seven threes in the quarter, it was somehow an improvement with Andre Drummond able to swat away a couple of drivers.
• Outgunning the Cavs was a tall task, and the Sixers were able to match the output of just Evan Mobley and Mitchell in the quarter. Even Maxey went uncharacteristically 2-of-4 from the free throw line. They looked short on most of their threes, going 2-of-8 from deep, and trailed by 14 at the end of one.

Kelly Oubre Jr. with his 1,000th career triple! pic.twitter.com/78fI70W2FX

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

Second Quarter​

• Some solid possessions were strung together offensively, led by Trendon Watford, who was able to get to the basket, the line, and knock down a three. They would have made a serious run if they were just able to knock down some free throws, but they were able to briefly get the lead into single digits. Bona struggled the most in that department, unable to take advantage of a transition take foul or a potential four-point play a few possessions later.

Trendon Watford hits from long range after some two-man game with Quentin Grimes pic.twitter.com/JSLTRgzDQO

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

• This wasn’t as timid of a half from Edgecombe as he’s had recently, but there was probably opportunity for him to attack the basket more, as daunting a front court as Cleveland has. He had two nice drives start the game but his attacks became sporadic and unsuccessful. In fairness his three-point shot actually had some legs under it but he still missed all three of his attempts.
• It was hard for anyone to stay in a groove with a replay review happening every three minutes, but the Sixers were able to continually chip away at the lead. Maxey seemed inspired by his close friend’s play, starting with a couple successful drives before hitting some absurd three-pointers from well behind the arc. Thanks in large part to 27 points in the quarter from Watford and Maxey, the Sixers were only down by three at the break.

Third Quarter​

• Just as quickly as the Sixers tied the game up in the second half the Cavs erased it with a 15-0 run. They were again so reliant on Maxey in isolation that they could get keyed in on. The rest of the starting lineup was shooting 6-of-23 from the field. To be fair, both active centers attempted threes. but only one got it to go.

ANDRE DRUMMOND THREE-POINTER ALERT pic.twitter.com/bNbUO2p285

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 6, 2025

• This has made them a higher turnover team as well when so many of the passes are hot potatoes. They picked up their 12th turnover after having at least 15 in each of their last three games. Somehow their overtime thriller in Washington was the lowest of the four with 14.
• Nearly everyone has been able to cook the Sixers off the perimeter this year so it’s no surprise Donovan Mitchell was able to do so on a short rested squad. He picked up his 36th point of the night to put the Cavs up 20 at the end of the third.

Fourth Quarter​

• Somehow Grimes was able to score 18 points before hitting his first three-pointer of the night. For however bad he looked on some field goal attempts he was able to get to the line nine times. It was so little enough to stop the Cavs onslaught though that even Kate and Alaa were wondering how long Maxey would still be in the game on the broadcast.
• It increasingly turned into a sour night for Edgecombe. He was increasingly flummoxed challenging the Cavs’ bigs. So much standing around on offense though does make it hard to get to the basket, but he certainly looked liked a rookie in this one.
• Even though they cut the lead to single digits briefly, it was not worth playing all the starters for almost the entirety of the quarter. Funny enough, it was only after the Cavs got right up by 10 that the bench was empty. It is still really early in the season for some of these guys to look as tired as they do.

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...cap-tyrese-maxey-vj-edgecombe-trendon-watford

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Paul George meeting doctors this weekend for ‘last hurdle’ in surgery recovery, says Nurse

(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Philadelphia 76ers told reporters at practice on Friday that Paul George would be meeting with doctors over this upcoming weekend to assess his recovery and that the next steps for the forward would be determined from there. George has been sidelined to start the 2025-26 season after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee back in July to treat an injury suffered during a workout in the offseason.

Paul George is meeting with doctors over the weekend to assess his recovery and next steps will be determined from there, per Sixers

— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) November 7, 2025

Now, this post in itself caused a bit of panic online. Fairly enough, I should add, as the “next steps will be determined from there” initially made it sound like there was maybe shift away from plans towards a return in the very near future. George had returned 5-on-5 at practice back on Oct. 16 and has been a full participant in practices since, so many fans were taken aback by the idea of the next steps still needing to be determined for him.

But rest assured, this is a medical team that George has been working closely with regularly throughout his rehab and recovery from the surgery. It’s nothing as new or developing as it initially sounded.

In fact, it sounds much more like a positive step rather than any indication of a bump in the road, as head coach Nick Nurse added that the meeting with his medical team this weekend was a “last hurdle” for George to clear towards making a return to play.

Nurse says that this meeting is "the last hurdle" for Paul George to clear, so it sounds like if things go well, George could be back soon. https://t.co/FUVqOio8I9

— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) November 7, 2025

Last season, George played 41 games, averaging 16.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.5 minutes per game after signing a four-year deal worth over $211 million. From the outset, PG was dealing with injuries, beginning with a knee hyperextension suffered preseason. The rest of the season was interspersed with an array of injuries (for George and the rest of the Sixers’ roster, really) that made any level of consistency impossible.

The Sixers are 5-3 to begin the 2025-26 season without George. He will be out for at least this weekend’s back-to-back for Philadelphia, but we will keep you posted as more information on his eventual return becomes available.

Until then, feel encouraged that it seems things are still on track for PG in terms of his recovery. In fact, he’s even out on the court after practice beating Jared McCain in shooting competitions.

McCain and George just made a friendly (i believe $1000) wager on a post practice shooting competition — McCain made 5 of these shots in a minute

The DJ put Not Like Us on for Paul and he coasted to victory pic.twitter.com/FaIwkh0PUT

— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) November 7, 2025

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...philadelphia-sixers-paul-geroge-injury-return

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Nick Nurse is courting disaster with the Sixers’ minutes distribution

Through the first two-plus weeks of the 2025-26 NBA season, here are the current leaders in minutes per game:

1. Tyrese Maxey (PHI): 41.3 MPG
2. VJ Edgecombe (PHI): 38.6 MPG
3. Austin Reaves (LAL): 37.9 MPG
4. Kelly Oubre Jr. (PHI), 37.4 MPG
5. Lauri Markkanen (UTA): 37.1 MPG

This isn’t an aberration for a Nick Nurse-led team, either.

In 2019-20, Kyle Lowry was fourth in the league in minutes per game (36.2), Fred VanVleet was eighth (35.7) and Pascal Siakam was 12th (36.2). In 2020-21, VanVleet was second (36.5) and Siakam was sixth (35.8). In 2021-22, Siakam and VanVleet were tied for the league lead at 37.9, while Scottie Barnes was tied for eighth at 35.4. And in 2022-23, Nurse’s final year in Toronto, Siakam led the league at 37.4, VanVleet was fifth at 36.7 and OG Anunoby was 16th at 35.6.

Someone said Canadian thibs pic.twitter.com/L5YaRD1sao

— Subscribe to the You Know Ball Patreon (@TrillBroDude) January 5, 2023

Once Jared McCain gets back up to speed and Paul George makes his season debut, Maxey and Edgecombe’s minutes figure to tick down accordingly. After all, Nurse emphasized at media day how the Sixers “should be able to keep energy up with some shorter stints just because of the sheer numbers” in their new-look backcourt.

Then again, it’s fairly clear that three-guard lineups will be a staple for the Sixers this year. Nurse is a believer in getting the best players on the floor, positions be damned, and four of the Sixers’ seven best players are all guards. They’d be doing themselves a disservice by playing McCain and Quentin Grimes sparingly behind Maxey and Edgecombe.

The Sixers need to find a healthy balance between leaning on their backcourt and preserving their key guys throughout the grind of the 82-game regular season. The debacle that was their 2024-25 campaign should be fresh in their minds, after all.

With both George and Joel Embiid sidelined at the start of last season, Maxey averaged 41.0 minutes per game across his first six outings. In the seventh game of the year, he suffered a hamstring strain that sidelined him for two weeks. By the time he returned, the Sixers were in a 2-11 hole that they’d never climb their way out of.

Maxey was sensational over those first six games last year, averaging 30.2 points, 4.3 assists, 3.5 three-pointers, 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals, although he shot only 40.8 percent overall and 29.6 percent from deep. He has leveled up this season with a league-best 33.5 points, 8.5 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 4.3 made threes while shooting 47.8 percent overall and 47.9 percent from distance.

Edgecombe, Oubre and Grimes are also off to strong starts this season, but the Sixers’ house of cards would be at major risk of crumbling if Maxey got injured. You’d never know that by how Nurse handled the fourth quarter of the loss to Cleveland on Wednesday.

The short-handed Sixers were only down three at halftime, but Maxey sputtered in the third quarter, finishing with only five points on 2-of-8 shooting. Edgecombe replaced him with three minutes left in the third quarter, but Maxey was right back on the floor at the start of the fourth even though the Sixers were down 107-87. The Sixers only got within single digits with 1:21 remaining in the game, but Maxey stayed in for the first 11 minutes of the fourth quarter regardless. This was the second night of a road back-to-back in which Maxey played 39 minutes the previous night against the Chicago Bulls, too.

Maxey’s workload is setting off the biggest alarm bells, but Edgecombe’s is a close second. While Edgecombe has been an absolute revelation early in the year, he’s also playing the most minutes of any rookie since Michael Jordan, according to Liberty Ballers’ TrillBroDude. At this rate, he might hit the rookie wall by early December.

The Sixers have another back-to-back Saturday against the Raptors and Sunday against the Detroit Pistons, although they have a two-day gap between their games against the Boston Celtics (Nov. 11), Pistons (Nov. 14) and Los Angeles Clippers (Nov. 17). That should give the gassed-out Sixers some well-deserved rest after a brutal early-season schedule.

They just need to make it to those games in one piece. Nurse’s current minutes distribution won’t help them with that goal.

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/76er...inutes-distribution-tyrese-maxey-vj-edgecombe

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Two days off, two days on for Sixers hosting Raptors to open back-to-back (in black jerseys!)

(Photo by Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The Philadelphia 76ers are back in action on Saturday evening hosting the Toronto Raptors after two much-needed days off.

And, of course, it’s the start of a back-to-back. This is already the Sixers’ third back-to-back of the 2025-26 campaign — they have 16 total across the season. After taking on the Raptors on Saturday, they will face the Detroit Pistons on Sunday. At least both games are home for this one…

It’s also the first game the Sixers will be wearing the black, 2000-01 era jerseys! So at the very least, the team and the court should look good.

The last few days of respite came at a good time for the Sixers, who are coming off two losses this past Tuesday (at the Chicago Bulls) and Wednesday (visiting the Cleveland Cavaliers). The first looked extremely promising for Philadelphia at the beginning, with the Sixers amassing a 24-point lead at one point. A second-half collapse punctuated by zero field goals scored in the last 6:26 to play, however, let the Bulls steal that one away. The second contest of the week, visiting the Cavaliers, was more of a blowout defeat. Cleveland decimated Philadelphia 132-121 (which makes it sound like a closer contest than it really ever was) on Wednesday, greatly benefitting from having Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley all available for the first time this season.

That Wednesday loss was also, notably, VJ Edgecombe’s first truly rough game of his young career. The rookie scored just seven points — his first single-digit scoring game — on 3-for-14 (21.4%) field goal shooting and 0-for-5 from long range. That one game in itself is less important, in my opinion, than how he could bounce back on Saturday. He has been playing an incredible amount of time on the floor (38.5 minutes per game, trailing only Tyrese Maxey’s 41.3 for the Sixers), so hopefully the small break did him some good.

Now, we move on to the Raptors. Toronto is coming into South Philadelphia less than 24 hours removed from defeating the Atlanta Hawks 109-97 on Friday night in a NBA Cup group play game. The Raptors are red-hot right now, riding a four-game win streak after a rough 1-4 start to open their season. The Hawks actually had the advantage for most of last night’s game before the Raptors bit back in the final frame, outscoring Atlanta 36-20 to take over the lead and the victory.

Toronto have widespread ability across their youthful roster — they have just one player 30 or older, with center Jakob Poeltl having turned 30 just a few weeks ago. Three players are currently neck-and-neck to lead the team for scoring through their first nine contests: Brandon Ingram (21.0 points per game), RJ Barrett (20.6) and Scottie Barnes (20.1). Immanuel Quickley is the squad’s leading playmaker averaging 6.3 assists in addition to his 13.6 points and 1.6 steals per game.

Overall, this Raptors team is resilient in the face of deficits, shooting the ball incredibly well and riding the momentum of turning around the start of their season. It’s a dangerous combination that the Sixers will have to try to contain.

The Sixers’ injury report has Jared McCain (injury management) listed as available for Saturday’s game, though he remains on a minutes restriction, head coach Nick Nurse told reporters at practice on Friday. Joel Embiid’s name did not appear at all on the report. Of course nothing is certain until the team takes the floor, but it sounds like Philadelphia plan to use Embiid for the Raptors rather than for the Pistons on Sunday, assuming they stick to the plan of not having him feature in both games of back-to-backs.

Otherwise, Paul George (knee surgery recovery) and Dominick Barlow (elbow laceration) both remain out.

The Raptors injury report will not be available until Saturday afternoon. For what it’s worth, the Raptors did not rest anyone in their starting five (Barrett, Ingram, Poeltl, Barnes, Quickley) in either game of a previous back-to-back this season. We will let you know their official availabilities, though, when that information is released.

The Sixers and Raptors tip off at 7:30 p.m ET.

Game Details

When: Saturday, November 8, 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...raptors-joel-embiid-jared-mccain-vj-edgecombe

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers-Cavaliers: Second Half Thread

Game Details​

When: Wednesday, November 5, 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Rocket Arena, Cleveland, OH
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...d-cavaliers-nba-discussion-thread-second-half

 

[Philadelphia 76ers]

Sixers Bell Ringer: Sixers pay proper homage to 2000-01 team with win over Toronto

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:

Tyrese Maxey – 4
Adem Bona – 1
Andre Drummond – 1
VJ Edgecombe – 1
Quentin Grimes – 1
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1

---

Donning the 25-year anniversary black retro jerseys, the Sixers channeled the 2001 playoffs in dispatching the Toronto Raptors in South Philadelphia, 130-120. It was a team-wide effort that saw six players finish in double figures in scoring, including all five starters. Having snapped a two-game skid to move up to 6-3 on the season, Philadelphia will be right back in action tomorrow night against Detroit. I don’t know what the tail end of the back-to-back will hold, but let’s celebrate a fun win from the Sixers tonight, one in which they were dressed to kill. Bell Ringer awaits.

Trendon Watford: 20 points, 17 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover

In his first start as a Sixer, Watford recorded career-highs in rebounds and assists on the way to his first career triple-double. He started at power forward, played some backup point guard, and did a little bit of everything in between. Watford’s inclusion helps shore up a lot of prior weaknesses for the Sixers. He’s a hugely positive force on the glass, and his ability to handle the rock allows Tyrese Maxey to run more off ball stuff where he’s extremely dangerous. The fact that the Sixers have Watford on a minimum deal for not only this season, but next year as well is a Daryl Morey masterclass. It also doesn’t hurt one bit that he and Maxey are such good friends to help ramp up the vibes to their current ‘immaculate’ level. Incredible performance from Trendon tonight, and shoutout to Kate Scott for the ‘Trendon makes, the world takes’ line.

TRENDON WATFORD. FEELING IT.

AND A TRENTON BRIDGE PUN FROM KATE SCOTT. pic.twitter.com/VPv83PleHD

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 9, 2025

Tyrese Maxey: 31 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 1 turnover

It’s nice that Maxey doesn’t have to be the be-all, end-all for this current iteration of the Sixers, as he needed to be for large stretches of last year when the burden became too great. In tonight’s win, plenty of other guys stepped up, and even someone like VJ Edgecombe who struggled for much of the night, then became the closer in the fourth quarter. But let’s not discount what was a very solid performance from Tyrese. His shooting gravity sets up so much for the Sixers, and he still has the ability to use the combination of blazing speed and hesitation dribbles to get to the bucket at will. Maxey also continues to chip in with a few key defensive plays every night, and his passing is getting better and better, as we saw on this on-point lob to Edgecombe.

TYRESE MAXEY LOBS, VJ EDGECOMBE SOARS FOR THE SLAM! pic.twitter.com/oNGWaZQ7gc

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 9, 2025

Joel Embiid: 29 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 2 turnovers

I felt like tonight was the best we’ve seen Joel look this season, and not just because he tallied a season-high 29 points. He also looked great on the defensive end, moving really well and affecting shots, even if he didn’t have the stocks totals to back it up. Offensively, everything looked smooth operating from the nail area against an undersized Toronto frontcourt missing Jakob Poeltl. Aside from a couple instances where he didn’t recognize the backside help coming, Embiid did a terrific job of diagnosing the defense and either feeding teammates or attacking single coverage to earn trips to the foul line. His mid-range jumper is as deadly as they come in the league right now. Overall, Joel just didn’t seem to be laboring on the court or looking out of place at any point, which is wonderful to see, health-wise.

Joel Embiid is up to 21 points in 20 minutes tonight through Q3! Shooting 8-for-13 (61.5%) from the floor pic.twitter.com/9chwF0H2ME

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) November 9, 2025

Source: https://www.libertyballers.com/76er...-homage-to-2000-01-team-with-win-over-toronto