The Philadelphia 76ers came out of a major offseason with plenty to like, but one familiar flaw still hangs over the roster: defensive rebounding. No matter how much talent they added, that problem never really got solved.
That matters because this has been a persistent issue for years. The 76ers finished 26th in defensive rebounding this past season, dead last the year before, and 25th during the 2023-24 campaign, which was Nick Nurse’s first full year with the franchise.
That kind of trend is hard to ignore. It points to something deeper than a bad stretch or a few unlucky bounces.
Part of the problem comes from how the roster is built. Outside of Joel Embiid and a group of traditional big men, Philadelphia has leaned heavily toward perimeter-oriented personnel.
The offseason brought in some notable names, but none of the additions are known as elite rebounders. So even after the upgrades, the same question remains: who is actually going to clean the glass?
Nurse still has not found a clean answer, and the front office has not handed him one through roster construction either. The coaching staff will need to do a lot of the heavy lifting here, because this issue is not going away on its own.
There is also the way the Sixers defend to consider. Under Nurse, they have played a more aggressive scheme built around blitzing and scrambling for position.
That style has its benefits, but it also leaves players vulnerable to being out of place when the shot goes up. In other words, the defense can force problems for the opponent and still give back possessions by failing to finish the play with the rebound.
Losing Andre Drummond only makes the picture worse. He was their best defensive rebounder, and none of the current big men, Embiid included in his current state, bring the same kind of presence on the boards.
That means the fix cannot just come from one more center or one more body in the paint. It has to be a team-wide adjustment, with the coaching staff making the right calls.
For Philadelphia, this is not a minor detail. Defensive rebounding is part of the foundation of team defense, and if the 76ers are poor there again, any gains they make in stopping opponents from the field could be wasted before the possession is over.
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Joel Embiid Problem Could Decide How Far The Sixers Go
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For the Sixers, the answer may have less to do with Embiid doing more and more to do with the team simplifying his job. Keeping him closer to the rim, cutting down on his time chasing perimeter players and building the rest of the defense around his strengths could be the difference between surviving the spring and making a real championship push. How well Philadelphia makes those adjustments may tell the story of its season. [Read more 🡒]
LeBron Just Changed Everything For The Sixers And Knicks Rivalry
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For the Sixers, the timing matters almost as much as the name on the contract. New Yorks title run ended a 53-year drought and gave the franchise a new layer of momentum, but James decision keeps Philadelphia right in the center of the leagues most watchable Eastern Conference arms race. His mention of Maxey as a key factor only adds to the intrigue, because it suggests the Sixers next chapter is being shaped not just by established stars, but by the guard who may have helped convince one of the games biggest names to change course. [Read more 🡒]