The Philadelphia 76ers finally got into the win column, and Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown were the ones carrying the load in a 106-100 victory over the New York Knicks.
Maxey poured in 28 points, while Brown added 19 points, eight rebounds, and six assists as Philadelphia survived a messy offensive night and leaned on everything else to get it done. The 76ers shot just 41.6% from the field and 27.5% from three, but they made enough plays in other areas to overcome that.
Philadelphia’s edge came from the details. The team finished with 28 assists, 10 blocks, and eight steals, forced 15 New York turnovers, and gave the Knicks very little room to settle in offensively. New York shot just 37.2% overall, and while Karl-Anthony Towns posted 19 points and 12 rebounds and Jalen Brunson scored 21, the Knicks never found enough consistent rhythm to pull the game away.
Anfernee Simons gave the 76ers a needed boost off the bench with 13 points, while Joel Embiid added a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds. The win also featured strong all-around work from LeBron James, who had 14 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who chipped in 10 points and a block.
Tyrese Maxey: A
Maxey was the driving force for Philadelphia, putting together a 28-point night in 40 minutes. He hit 9 of 19 shots, went 8 for 9 at the line, and added five assists, three steals, and three blocks.
The three-point shot wasn’t falling consistently - he made two of nine - but he kept pressure on the defense all game long and found ways to score when the Sixers needed it most. His plus-11 reflected how much he tilted the floor in Philadelphia’s favor.
Jaylen Brown: A-
Brown gave Philadelphia exactly the kind of steady, multi-level game it needed. He scored 19 points on 7-for-14 shooting, hit two threes, grabbed eight rebounds, and dished out six assists.
He also added a steal and a block while keeping the ball movement clean with only two turnovers. His plus-17 was the best mark among Philadelphia’s starters, and his presence helped keep the offense from stalling when the shot quality dipped.
Anfernee Simons: B+
Simons came through with 13 points off the bench, shooting 5 for 10 and knocking down three triples. He added two rebounds and didn’t turn the ball over, giving Philadelphia valuable scoring in a tight game. Even with a minus-five, his shot-making helped cover for the team’s perimeter struggles.
Joel Embiid: B
Embiid finished with a double-double, tallying 13 points and 11 rebounds to go with six assists, two steals, and three blocks. His defensive impact was real, especially around the paint, but the efficiency wasn’t there.
He shot 4 for 15 from the floor, 2 for 7 from deep, and also committed four turnovers. Still, the rebounding and rim protection mattered.
LeBron James: B
James filled the stat sheet with 14 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. He added a steal and a block and kept turnovers down to one. The scoring wasn’t sharp - he shot 5 for 13 and missed all three of his three-point attempts - but he helped keep the offense organized and contributed to Philadelphia’s 28-assist team total.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: B
Caldwell-Pope scored 10 points on 3-for-8 shooting and went 2 for 6 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed four rebounds, handed out one assist, and recorded a block without turning it over. On a night when every made three mattered, his spacing had value.
VJ Edgecombe: C+
Edgecombe put up nine points and four rebounds in 35 minutes, adding one assist and one steal. He shot 4 for 10 from the field, missed all three of his three-point attempts, and committed one turnover. He also picked up four fouls, which limited his margin defensively, but he avoided mistakes and stayed in the flow of the game.
Adem Bona: C
Bona logged 10 minutes and made his presence felt defensively with three rebounds, one assist, and one block. He didn’t take a shot and didn’t turn it over, and his work around the rim helped Philadelphia in short bursts.
Jabari Walker: N/A
Walker recorded one assist in three minutes.
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For the 76ers, it reopened an uncomfortable question about what exactly went wrong during Georges time in Philadelphia. Injuries were part of the answer, but so were the team dynamics around him, which never seemed to let his game breathe in the way it did against his new backdrop. If this is the beginning of a resurgence, it only sharpens the sense that the Sixers may have watched a different version of George emerge just as he moved on. [Read more 🡒]