The 2024-2025 Sixers season has not gone how anybody expected to this point. They currently sit at 7-15 and in 12th place in the NBA Eastern Conference. However, the Sixers have won four of their last five games. Joel Embiid just returned after a seven-game absence due to him experiencing swelling in his surgically repaired left knee and looked like his typical All-Star self — maybe for the first time this season. Some would argue that Embiid looked as spry as he’s looked in years, inspiring confidence that the big man's season might not be a lost cause.
The Sixers sit just 1.5 games back of the 10th seed which is the final qualifying spot for the NBA’s play-in tournament. They are just two games back of the eighth and final playoff spot and only five games back of the Milwaukee Bucks for the sixth seed and the final guaranteed spot to avoid the play-in. Despite the sluggish start to this season the Sixers are far from doomed. The Sixers’ upcoming schedule is a prime opportunity to continue to gain ground on the rest of the conference:
Dec. 13 vs. Pacers (10-15)
Dec. 16 @ Hornets (7-17)
Dec. 20 vs Hornets (7-17)
Dec. 21 @ Cavs (21-4)
Dec. 23 vs Spurs (12-12)
With the Sixers Big 3 of Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey all seemingly back in the fold — barring any more setbacks — the Sixers are expected to be favored in four of their next five games leading up to their Christmas Day clash with their bitter rivals and defending NBA champion Boston Celtics.
The Sixers are 5-4 in games that Paul George alone has played more than 25 minutes and have a defensive rating of 105.3 in those contests, which would put them second in the entire NBA. The Sixers being this effective with George on the floor defensively — despite missing Embiid and his rim protection and overall defensive capabilities in all but one of those games, the most recent one against the Chicago Bulls in which the Sixers won by a score of 108-100 — goes to show how impactful George is to this Sixers team just by being on the floor.
Somehow, the Sixers now rank 12th in the league in defense, right behind the Heat and Celtics. In the minutes with Paul George on the floor, they have a defensive rating of 105.3, which would rank 2nd in the league.
A truly stunning result given how bad it's felt.
— Mike O'Connor (@MOConnor_NBA) December 10, 2024
Maxey also turned in one of his better performances of the season Sunday as he recorded his first career triple-double, pouring in 25 points, dishing a career-high 14 assists and pulling down a career-high 11 rebounds. The Sixers’ process and operation is so much better when they have their three stars on the court together. Per NBA.com, the Sixers rank 27th in the NBA in offense which has obviously been their biggest issue all season. They’ve struggled to find consistent sources of offense and ways to create easy baskets with their stars missing so much time.
What at times has felt like a lost season for the Sixers — and has had fans even contemplating if the best course of action would be to tank the season and play for a high draft pick in the loaded 2025 NBA draft — finally has reasons for optimism. There’s hope that this team that was put together this past offseason with the expectations of a deep playoff run could make those things come to fruition. I also suspect that Daryl Morey has a few tricks up his sleeve as the NBA trade deadline grows closer by the day.
Sixers fans — are we back?