The 76ers surprised the Celtics by knocking them out in a seven-game series in the opening round of last year’s playoffs. Boston was apparently so impressed that it felt only right to gift Philadelphia with Jaylen Brown. Well, that’s not exactly how it went down, but we did see the Celtics ship the two-time All-NBA Second-Team wing to Philly for Paul George and a couple of picks. The deal was appalling for many reasons, one being that other front office executives felt the Sixers should have had to attach a first-rounder or two just to get off George’s salary.
Landing Brown alone had people feeling bullish on Philadelphia. Adding a talent like that to Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and VJ Edgecombe would have been interesting enough. You know who else was excited? LeBron James.
When James and the Lakers mutually parted ways, it was made known that the 41-year-old would play on a veteran’s minimum deal in order to run with a contender. After taking his time to sort through his options, James decided the Sixers gave him the best shot at another title. They also give him the closest experience to playing for a New York team, since he’s commuting via helicopter from Manhattan to Philly.
James obviously isn’t the player he once was. However, he’s still a basketball genius who can give you 20-5-5 on any given night. On the contract he’s currently playing on, there’s no better value in basketball.
The 76ers made some other good pickups, too, bringing in Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to bolster the bench.
This team is absolutely loaded entering the 2026-27 season, and Nick Nurse is the right type of head coach to maximize that potential. Still, Philadelphia will only be as good as health allows, which makes this a difficult group to handicap. There’s definitely potential for a run to the NBA Finals, but the Under on the win total is the only way to bet the Sixers right now. James and Embiid will surely miss a ton of games.
BURNING QUESTIONS
Can Embiid stay healthy?
Nothing Philadelphia did in the offseason will matter if Embiid can’t make himself available. He has played fewer than 40 regular-season games in three consecutive years. He did turn in a bit of a throwback performance against the Celtics in last year’s playoffs, but playing 36.5 minutes per game of high-level basketball left him absolutely drained for the series against the Knicks.
I’m not sure what Philadelphia’s plan is for keeping him healthy, but there had better be an aggressive one in place to keep him out of harm’s way — especially with backup center Ariel Hukporti having suffered a torn Achilles in preseason.
The one positive heading into the year is that Embiid lost a significant amount of weight and looks the best he has in nearly a decade, which probably has something to do with James being around to motivate him. Playing lighter should take some pressure off Embiid’s knees.
Are there too many egos for the team to thrive in the playoffs?
You hear it all the time: “There’s only one ball to go around.” It’s a real concern in the NBA, where the best teams move the ball and get everyone involved. The Sixers have a roster full of players who need the basketball, with Brown being the main concern. Last year, he ranked third in the NBA in Usage Rate (35.1%), and that’s just not going to happen again with this roster. Is he alright with that?
Fortunately, the Sixers have James to deal with these problems. Philadelphia’s players get the luxury of playing through The King, who will know exactly how shots should be distributed in key moments. That’s actually part of the reason I was hoping he would return to Cleveland. I loved the idea of him making the right decisions for a Cavs team that struggled with decision-making against New York.
Perhaps it’s a bit naive of me, but I just can’t bring myself to worry about the offense of a team with this much talent. However…
Will the team be tough enough defensively?
It’s easy to get excited about the 76ers offense, with Maxey and Edgecombe doing explosive young people stuff next to the brilliance of James, the three-level scoring of Brown, and the low-post domination of Embiid. My issue with Philadelphia is the defense.
Edgecombe and Brown will compete defensively every single night. Maxey, though, has been a weak defender throughout his career, James is no longer willing to dig in for 48 minutes, and Embiid’s defensive impact has faded as his mobility has decreased. For all the talk of the Sixers having a bunch of high-usage players to sort out offensively, defense is where Philadelphia must prove it can be a true contender.
Don’t sleep on the possibility of Wade playing more minutes than expected in key situations. He’s one of the few defensive-minded players on the roster, and he can guard multiple spots.
WIN TOTAL LEAN: Under 51.5
