Jan 2, 2026, 3:49 AM UTC
A win to kill all agenda wars, how nice.
The Sixers knocked off the Dallas Mavericks 123-108 Thursday night.
Tyrese Maxey had another exciting homecoming, leading all scorers with 34 points with 10 assists and eight rebounds going 14-of-24 from the floor. VJ Edgecombe shot 9-of-14 to go for 23 points, five rebounds, two assists and four steals.
Joel Embiid had 22 shooting 9-of-18 from the floor with four boards and six assists.
Quentin Grimes bounced back to go for 19 while Paul George finished with 14.
Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.
* [For the third game in a row the Sixers started slow defensively](https://x.com/NoahLevick/status/2006908144778358850?s=20) and their opponent came out unable to miss. Dallas made their first six shots of the game — and credit to Quentin Grimes for breaking that up by blocking a Flagg transition layup.
* It wasn’t hard for that Mavericks start — they made 15 field goals in the quarter and 13 of those came in the paint. The Sixers always get beat running back, and in the half court they fell asleep on a few cuts. Embiid, Maxey and Edgecombe all got off to productive starts on the other end which was good because they took 14 of the team’s first 20 shots.
* Embiid’s first shift was a bit shorter than usual, only a bit longer than George’s, but they both returned to finish the quarter. George didn’t take his first shot until checking back in, making a couple layups that cut the Mavs’ lead to seven as stops continued to be a rarity.
* It looked like there was some tinkering with how Nick Nurse wanted to stagger the starters in the first, but Embiid, George and Maxey were all out there to start the second. George not only settled in with baskets at the rim, but was able to dust AD to a wide open paint for a dunk, much to his teammate’s delight. Embiid seemed to lock in on the defensive end and the Sixers seemed to steady the ship defensively, starting the second a 17-4 run.
* Being in the bonus meant going three minutes without a field goal after that dunk. He might have been trying more so to draw a foul this time, but Edgecombe is still really figuring out how close he has to be to posterize people. His attempt on AD was nearly over the backboard by the time he took off, but he was able to salvage it by drawing a foul in the process.
* Of course Edgecombe made a really tough hustle play moments later, fighting hard for the offensive rebound on a shot he had missed, putting it right back up to get those two points. The best positive from the half had to be Embiid moving really well once again. He’s been a lot bouncier trying to block shots and swatted a Flagg layup as well. The springiness also showed when he blew past Davis on a pump fake for an easy layup as the Sixers took an 11-point lead into the half.
* It took the Sixers a couple minutes to get going but Dominick Barlow was able to hit a rare three to start them off. He sat for most the first half after picking up two early fouls and a third on his first chance to return and was playing with no rhythm because of that. The break seemed to be a good reset for him as he grabbed a steal and turned the fast break into a set of free throws, though he did pick up his fourth later in the third.
* Edgecombe wasn’t scoring in the frequent bursts as his teammates in the first half so in the third it really felt like he was putting his imprint on the game. Every successful layup of his looked dazzling, unfazed by Dallas’ lengthy defense. He and Maxey had swung the pace of the game back in their favor, outrunning everyone into open baskets.
* Another rotation note is that Adem Bona replaced Andre Drummond as the backup center, and got on the board in his first real minutes of the game with a putback layup. Embiid relieved him with a couple more baskets in the post as he was really comfortable operating there all night. Another layup from Edgecombe kept the Sixers lead at nine as the third ended.
* The Mavs continued to creep up, cutting that lead in half a couple minutes into the fourth. Naji Marshall only had two points but put up a quick seven during this time. Not only did the Sixers also have Barlow foul out, but Jared McCain continued to be unable to buy a shot. The wide open three he missed made him 0-of-2 from deep on the night. He’s shot 25% from beyond the arc in his last five games coming into this one.
* Grimes though appeared to shake some of the struggles he had in late December. He hadn’t scored in the third but steadied things when the Mavs had cut things to four, responding with a pick-6 to give the Sixers an immediate basket. He followed up a Maxey block at the rim with one of his own a few possessions later and got a couple more threes to go down.
* There was a weird play that Maxey kept in a rebound in play he didn’t have to. P.J. Washington stole the ball from him and the Mavs ripped off a 7-0 run. It feels like that would often start an embarrassing collapse, but they kept composure. Edgecombe had a massive block on Brandon Williams in transition and Grimes hit another big three to put this one away and the Sixers started the new year off on the right foot.
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