As they prepare to face the Boston Celtics for the third time in 20 days, the Sixers sit with a 6-4 record – the result of a few disappointing close losses, and worlds better than the miserable start the team had last season.
That the Sixers are 6-4 despite some substantial, obvious and (they hope) correctable issues presenting themselves is a positive indication in itself. Last year's Sixers were derailed by even the slightest bit of adversity; this year's Sixers have largely been eager to face any and all challenges head on.
Now that the 10-game mark has been reached, it feels reasonable to explore some of the overarching numbers surrounding the 2025-26 Sixers season, from their tremendous guard play to Joel Embiid's mixed results and everything in between.
Time to dive into the stats (all of which are as of Monday):
30.3
Joel Embiid's points per 36 minutes in 2025-26.
When Embiid scored four points in 20 minutes on 1-for-9 shooting from the field on opening night in Boston, the outlook for the former NBA MVP looked awfully bleak.
Now? Not so much. Despite being on a strict minutes restriction – he has yet to reach 26 full minutes in any appearance; he is averaging 23.3 minutes per game – Embiid has scored at least 20 points in every game he has since played. His driving and foul-drawing have been noticeably better as time has gone on, and in his last appearance he played more than he has all season and scored more points than he has all season:
Embiid remains imperfect offensively – a rough closing effort in Chicago last week is an example – but his ability to manipulate the game and torment opposing defenses has very much returned. Much to the delight of Sixers head coach Nick Nurse, Embiid has upped his three-point volume, and now he is finding his ability putting the ball on the floor again.
Most of all, Embiid's mere presence provides such tremendous value to his teammates on the offensive end; no matter how Embiid is moving he is going to draw significant attention from all five defenders on the floor for any opponent.
However...
126.0
The Sixers' Defensive Rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) with Joel Embiid on the floor.
Embiid's immobility cannot be masked all that well on the defensive end, where the Sixers have been shredded whenever he has been on the floor. Embiid has shown some signs of life as a shot-blocker in recent games, but even if that persists – which would be somewhat surprising – Embiid is not a legitimate rim protector right now because he just cannot move at the requisite speed to keep up:
Unfortunately, this is part of the cost of doing business for now. There is no way for Embiid to become better laterally without playing in games, improving his condition and hoping his knee responds well. But there is no doubt that Embiid's limitations have created an enormous number of issues for the Sixers defensively.
MORE: Closing lineups, Jared McCain's usage and a vote of confidence in Nick Nurse
+17.7
The Sixers' Net Rating (point differential per 100 possessions) with Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Quentin Grimes on the floor.
Going into the season, it appeared that four of the six best players on the Sixers were guards. (This may still be true, but Jared McCain has some work ahead of him.) It was obvious that Nurse was going to have to rely on three-guard units at some point, and he opted to embrace it from the outset. Nurse has not gone as far as starting Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Quentin Grimes together yet, though he has acknowledged it remains a consideration. But he has routinely closed games with all three of those guards on the floor, and Grimes' ability to defend above his size with decent success is the key to making it all work.
The Sixers' 121.8 Offensive Rating during their three-guard minutes is outstanding, but so is their 104.2 Defensive Rating. It has taken a lot of effort and energy to make this arrangement not just viable defensively, but actually a quality look. Then the offense can do the rest of the talking. A major part of that, of course, is Edgecombe, whose offensive skills are far outpacing what was expected of him.
Even after a four-game slump in which he has shot 15-for-50 from the field, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft is averaging 16.3 points per game while knocking down 36.5 percent of his long-range attempts on significant volume (5.2 three-point attempts per game).
332
The number of total points scored by Tyrese Maxey across 10 games.
The absolute top story of this Sixers season so far has to be Maxey, who plateaued for the first time in his NBA career last season and is responding with what looks like the ultimate leap: Maxey is playing like a full-blown superstar, capable of sleepwalking into a 30-point night against just about any defense while also growing as a playmaker and continuing to make impactful plays as a defender.
The only NBA player averaging more points per game than Maxey was reigning NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. And Maxey is scoring from all over the place:
Maxey has also gotten considerably better at getting to the line, which provides even more stability for his overall scoring efforts and helps him diversify his methods of attack. He is as well-rounded of a scoring guard as there is in the NBA right now, a true nightmare to defend.
7
The number of games that VJ Edgecombe has totaled at least four rebounds and four assists.
After Edgecombe scored 34 points in his historic NBA debut and very quickly posted another few high-scoring outings, it would be very easy for him to simply lock in on trying to break rookie scoring records and continue proving his skeptics wrong. Instead, Edgecombe has shown an innate malleability in terms of role that makes it incredibly easy to envision him being a key part of winning teams for many years to come. He is averaging 5.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game on top of his better-than-expected scoring marks, and those plays always feel impactful.
What also stands out: on multiple occasions already, Edgecombe has flushed a poor scoring night, confidently stepped into a crucial shot during crunch time and come through. He possesses a level of maturity that most 20-year-olds do not have.
-11.3
The Sixers' Net Rating with Tyrese Maxey off the floor.
For years, Maxey has been right at the center of the Sixers' efforts to stop the inevitable bleeding that has occurred whenever Embiid rested. Suddenly, the tables have turned: Maxey is the one the Sixers have been unable to survive without. He has played a league-high 41.1 minutes per game; it is a number that must come down. But it is always going to be a challenge for Nurse, an aggressive coach minutes-wise to begin with, to not go to Maxey when his team has struggled so mightily without him.
Speaking of, not only is Maxey leading the NBA in minutes per game, but Edgecombe is third and Kelly Oubre Jr. is fourth. Nurse does not have tremendous depth to work with right now, particularly because McCain missed the first two weeks of the season and has struggled in his first two appearances. But at some point, the minutes totals will have to go down for those guys. The eventual return of nine-time All-Star Paul George should help to some degree.
MORE: Paul George remains out for Sixers-Celtics
35.6
The Sixers' offensive rebounding percentage, fourth-best among NBA teams.
For years, the Sixers have been the team that loses the possession battle because of poor rebounding. They lost a gut-wrenching playoff series to the New York Knicks two years ago thanks in large part to their futility on the glass. The Sixers still have some leaks as a defensive rebounding team, but the front office's clear focus on adding physicality and athleticism in the frontcourt has paid dividends. Andre Drummond's resurgent season has been huge for the Sixers' rebounding, while two-way forwards Jabari Walker and Dominick Barlow are both specialists of sorts when it comes to the offensive glass:
However, that is not the entire battle...
67.1
The Sixers' defensive rebounding percentage, seventh-worst among NBA teams.
The Sixers are still struggling to close out possessions as much as they would like to, and to some degree that is a byproduct of the number of smaller lineups they play as a result of an imbalanced roster. Defense and defensive rebounding might be the two most important areas where George is going to help this team; remarkably his on-ball scoring and secondary shot creation are not exactly needs right now.
Perhaps that will be for the best; if George's disappointing debut season with the Sixers was any indication his days of being a go-to scorer or anything close are behind him. He might be suited better for a role centered around spot-up shooting, defense and rebounding, then George can occasionally have his nights of on-ball scoring success.
MORE:Uncharacteristic offensive struggles plague Sixers in loss to Pistons
38.3
Kelly Oubre Jr.'s three-point percentage (6.0 attempts per game).
Oubre has been a tremendous model of consistency in 2025-26, starting all 10 games, doing anything and everything asked of him on both ends of the floor and racking up absurd minutes totals. Oubre struggled offensively on opening night and in Sunday's loss to the Detroit Pistons, but those two off nights bookended eight consecutive games of at least 17 points.
Oubre's accuracy from beyond the arc has been far better than anything he has produced in two years with the Sixers, and even if it declines a bit he is still on pace to have what is far and away his best shooting season in a very long time. Oubre's tone-setting defense, helpful rebounding and reliable rim pressure have all been tremendously valuable.
-36.3
The Sixers' Net Rating during third quarters, worst among NBA teams.
The Sixers did not play well enough on offense down the stretch to win Sunday's game, but it was another night in which they found themselves on the wrong end of a rout in the third quarter. No team in the NBA has even been as close to as bad as the Sixers during third quarters of games.
Nurse has been asked about this troubling trend on several occasions over the first few weeks of the season. As of Sunday night, he still was unsure of any common threads within their season-long struggles. "I don't think so," Nurse said, and he would be right to point out that the Sixers' issues have not been consistent, in that some of those dreadful runs have come because of brutal defense and others have stemmed from poor offensive execution.
However, the one thing that is consistent is that the Sixers are being obliterated out of halftime. Will they find a solution soon?
MORE: Is Jared McCain now a trade candidate?
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