The Sixers defeated the New York Knicks 120-97 in their preseason opener at the Xfinity Mobile Arena, not that the outcome of a preseason basketball game is all that meaningful.
There are a few things about last night’s game that were meaningful, however.
First, the preseason is always great to see how individual players look, and especially how young players look, either those getting their first taste of NBA basketball like Labaron Philon, or those young enough that improvement, perhaps even drastic improvement, is reasonable to project, like that of second year guard VJ Edgecombe.
Second, it’s important that teams get through the preseason relatively unscathed, so the key players are available when the games start to actually matter.
The Sixers came away successful in one of those two endeavors.
The story of the night was Ariel Hukporti, who had to be helped off the court just five minutes into the game after hitting the deck and grabbing his right leg. The Sixers would announce after the game that Hukporti was scheduled to get imaging done on his right Achilles on Tuesday.
“I just saw him for a little bit during the game and just gave him a big hug,” head coach Nick Nurse said after the game. “He’s been a joy to coach in the short time he’s been here. Really a good dude, so we’ll just hope for the best.”
That sentiment was shared up and down the Sixers’ roster on Monday night, from Jaylen Brown to VJ Edgecombe to rookie Labaron Philon. But the injury appeared to hit none harder than Jabari Walker, who seemed to be struggling to keep his emotions in check while talking about his injured teammate.
“These are my brothers. It’s especially hard for me because I’ve seen the work that he puts in,” Walker said. “You know, he just came off an injury, and his energy is great. He’s a great locker room guy.
“Dang that messed me up, honestly,” Walker continued. “Yeah, that messed me up, I’m not gonna lie. That’s tough.”
There are logistical challenges if Hukporti’s injury is the worst case scenario. The Sixers are already playing without Adem Bona, who is still recovering from a left foot sprain, and Tacko Fall, who signed an exhibit 10 contract heading into training camp, but has missed most of it with hip soreness. That leaves Joel Embiid the only true center currently available to play.
And the Sixers, who have just $1.8 million in space left under the hard cap, would be hard-pressed to add depth at this time, as even the Disabled Player Exception, if Hukporti’s Achilles keeps him out for the season and the Sixers end up being granted a DPE, would not give them more flexibility under the hard cap.
The tl;dr is that the DPE gives the team an exception to use so they can exceed the salary cap to replace the injured player, but it does not create space under the hard cap if a team is pressed up against it, which the Sixers currently are.
But those are considerations for another day. For now, we wait for the results of the imaging, and hope for a bit of good news on the injury front.
Big picture takeaway – VJ Edgecombe’s dribble-drive game
You could go in multiple different directions here.
Jabari Walker looked incredible off the bench, with 11 points and 11 rebounds in 19 minutes of play, connecting on three of his five 3-point attempts. Given the Sixers’ lack of options at the five spot, Walker could be in line to see some small ball center minutes, making his strong play, and seemingly increased confidence level as a perimeter shooter, even more important.
Jaylen Brown was electric, with 22 points on 13 shots in just 17 minutes of play. His ability to carry the offense while LeBron James, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey sat is desperately needed for a trio that has missed a considerable amount of time the past few years, and who, James and Embiid specifically, will need to be managed to make it through what is hopefully a long and grueling run deep into May and June.
In a normal game Brown would be the big takeaway, but this is a preseason game where the results don’t matter, and we largely know what Jaylen Brown is capable of. This was a proof of concept, sure, but not new information, and like I said at the top the most meaningful takeaways from preseason hoops tend to come from the young players who have less of a track record, or who you hope can take that next significant jump on their pathway towards stardom.
Enter VJ Edgecombe.
Everyone expects that Edgecombe, the third overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft who averaged 16 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists as a rookie, has put in the work to make the sophomore leap that most stars experience. But on a team that suddenly features three no-doubt-about-it future Hall of Famers, and another in Tyrese Maxey who is just now entering his prime, Edgecombe may not have the ball in his hands often enough to truly showcase the skill development that he has made, at least not as frequently as high draft picks typically get a chance to do.
Which makes the preseason, when stars are resting and Edgecombe’s role is more significant, a great chance to look for glimpses at the progress the Sixers’ young guard has made in rounding out his game.
The early returns are positive.
Edgecombe finished with 12 points, seven assists and zero turnovers in 20 minutes of play. The overall efficiency — 12 points on 4-9 shooting — isn’t something you would necessarily write home about, but that’s mostly because his outside shot wasn’t falling. Inside of the arc, where Edgecombe shot 4-6 and got to the free-throw line five times, was impressive.
Even more impressive than the stats was how he got there.
All four of Edgecombe’s buckets came at the rim, and all four came in the half-court, where Edgecombe routinely beat the Knicks starters off the dribble. The highlight of the night came off a nifty euro step where Edgecombe split the defenders for a dunk late in the first quarter, but the performance was impressive all around. Edgecombe’s handle looked tighter and more under control, he used his clearly improved upper body strength to finish through contact, and he dished out assists like he was running the show for the Bahamas national team.
“He’s made a step forward, I think. Just in general it feels like he’s better than he was a year ago, and I think [the handle] is one of them,” Nick Nurse said after the game. “That handle is getting him through some tighter gaps down the lane.”
The Sixers demand attention because of the sheer amount of talent that they possess, but there are a few key variables which will determine just how formidable they ultimately are.
Their ability to stay healthy is the obvious one, and the one that preseason is going to offer virtually no insight into. Their ability to mesh their individual skill sets into a cohesive group attack will also be crucial, but with three of the five starters out of the lineup we got limited info on that last night. Next comes whether or not Joel Embiid can regain some of the defensive mobility which the knee injuries have sapped away, which would redefine the already high upside of this team, but Embiid was out of the lineup on Monday night.
Which leaves VJ Edgecombe.
Most of the projections of this team have VJ Edgecombe coming in as a distant 5th place in the star-o-meter scale. That’s a reasonable expectation given that Edgecombe just turned 21, is surrounded by some of the best players in the world, including arguably the greatest of all time, and that VJ has the most holes in his game among the Avengers-level starting five that the Sixers have assembled.
But if Edgecombe truly has a massive leap in store for his second year, if he’s not just on the path towards stardom, but staring it right in the eye?
That would be one of the easiest ways for the Sixers to go from “in the conversation” to “inner circle contender,” not to mention what such a development would mean for the Sixers’ long-term outlook. And while nobody is ready to make such a proclamation after one preseason game, last night at the very least gave some positive indications that VJ spent his summer productively.
Stray thoughts
- I talked about this above, but Jabari Walker’s perimeter shooting was legitimately encouraging. I say that knowing full well that the 3-point shooting doesn’t tell the story of his impact on that game, but it is crucially important whether projecting his role this season. Walker does a lot of things you want in an NBA role player, from his rebounding to his tenacity to his limiting mistakes. But he needs to provide spacing to really see the floor consistently. Get a respectable shot and it’s very easy to project Walker to be an NBA rotation player. Which is why it was encouraging not just that he took five 3s, but that he took them decisively, with a seemingly quicker release, and more confidence than he had for most of last season. I say this all knowing that Walker had a few games last year where he was En Fuego, and we all made a big deal over what that meant, but it never stuck. And maybe last night wasn’t proof that he’s made progress, just us overstating the importance of a single game that just so happened to be the first game back after the long summer break, and we conflate single game sample size luck with skill development. But I’m going to choose to be optimistic, because I really think a version of Walker with a perimeter jumper has a role to play in the wars to come.
- Labaron Philon seemed a little bit passive while looking for his shot in the first half, and when he did start pulling the trigger he misfired from the perimeter, ending the night shooting just 2-9 from the field and 0-4 from 3-point range. But he was a committed setup man for his teammates and, most importantly, really got after it defensively, something which I have been impressed with since his very first Summer League appearance. The offense, especially with his ability to generate space off the dribble, will come around. It’s the defense, especially at his slender 176 pound frame, which might determine whether or not he’s in the rotation from Day 1. He won’t fix the frame concerns overnight, but if he continues to play with the defensive intensity that he’s shown thus far, he’ll have a chance to crack the rotation, even in this star-studded cast.
- It’s so nice to have the option to give the ball to Jaylen Brown and have him make a tough shot. The Sixers haven’t had very many of those kind of players over the last decade, and the few that they did have (i.e. James Harden and Paul George) had long since aged out of their physical primes, making those tough shots even lower percentage looks than they otherwise would be.
Quotables
“I love VJ, already. Like, that’s one of my favorite people in the world, and we just met. VJ’s gonna be great, and I’m excited to help him continue to thrive. His talent level is off the charts.” — Jaylen Brown, on VJ Edgecombe.
“I think we kinda see the game similarly. The spots that we want to get to, we have some similar viewpoints, so even when we’re talking to each other we’re on the same page.” — Jaylen Brown, on why he connected with VJ Edgecombe.
“Hukporti’s such a great guy, such a great communicator. I hope it’s nothing too severe. I guess they’re gonna get some second imaging in and stuff like that, but Huk has been a joy to have, he’s been great in the locker room, so it sucks to see a guy like that go down.” — Jaylen Brown, on Ariel Hukporti’s injury.
“He’s been playing with a little bit more confidence this week. It just feels like he’s ready to pull the trigger, and certainly he goes in and snaps down rebounds. But on the perimeter shot, it just looks like he’s maybe over a hump on it. When he’s got space he’s gotta take ’em, which is where we want him because he’s a really good shooter. So, good. If he can provide space and rebound he’s gonna be on the floor.” — Nick Nurse, on Jabari Walker.
“I really like his ability to run the team…He’s really communicative. He really gets the guys setup and in stuff.” — Nick Nurse, on Labaron Philon.
“Can’t even really explain how much work has gone into it. But, a lot of mental work has gone into it as well, just the confidence to shoot it. My teammates have seen me do it a lot of times, and now it’s just about me understanding that’s the best shot for our team sometimes. You know, I’m a good shooter, and I deserve to shoot that. I think I just took the pressure off myself this offseason. I said I’m gonna go in here and just be confident and let the work show.” — Jabari Walker, on his improved perimeter shot.
“I always thought I was a pretty good passer. I feel like I can create for others. I’m pass first, to be honest. I like to see my teammates score.” — VJ Edgecombe, on his seven assists.
