The Sixers finally put the group everyone has been waiting to see into the same room, same jerseys, same media day spotlight.
Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, and Joel Embiid all showed up for the team’s photo shoot, and the image of them together quickly took over the conversation online. Media day followed, with everyone on the roster except players on Exhibit contracts speaking to reporters. Not every session was long, but there were enough sharp lines and revealing moments to keep Philadelphia fans buzzing.
The loudest declaration came from James, who made no secret of why he chose this path and what he expects from it.
“We have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable,”James said. “If we don’t do that, then we’ll be like, ‘It was a great team on paper and we lost in the second round.’
I don’t wanna do that. I didn't leave my family to lose in the 2nd round, I know that.”
James picked Philadelphia on July 24 with a championship in mind, not just a playoff run. He could have landed in the postseason with the Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, or Cleveland Cavaliers, but he wanted something different and wanted to share the floor with Maxey, Embiid, and Brown. That decision meant leaving behind the family he has in Los Angeles, and he made clear he plans to give the Sixers everything he has as they chase a fifth banner.
Embiid brought a different kind of energy to the podium. Asked about what he did during the offseason, the 2022-23 Most Valuable Player kept it light.
“Nothing. I gained a lot of weight. But I feel good,” Embiid said of his offseason activity.
The joke landed exactly the way Embiid wanted it to. He looked leaner, smirked through the answer, and kept laughing afterward.
It was less about the line itself than the fact that he was loose, playful, and very much himself. That wasn’t the only time he joked around during the day, and that kind of mood is hard not to notice in a locker room.
Maxey, meanwhile, sounded ready for the version of the offense this roster is likely to demand. He knows his role is changing, and he’s embracing it.
“I think that is the opportunity that this roster presents, to play off the ball a little more,” Maxey said. “For me to play off-ball, get some catch-and-shoots, get some handoffs, I think it'll be good for our team.”
That shift makes sense. Maxey dealt with a heavy offensive burden in 2025-26, and only 16.6% of his shots were catch-and-shoots, according to NBA.com. With James likely taking over point guard duties and Embiid and Brown drawing major attention, that number figures to climb.
Edgecombe’s name also came up amid all the star power, and his answer made one thing clear: he’s not worried about being crowded out.
“I’m going into year two, I’m still learning,” Edgecombe said when asked about how he will handle playing off Philadelphia’s stars.
For anyone wondering whether the arrivals of James and Brown would affect Edgecombe’s place on the team, that answer should settle it. He’s focused on learning, fitting in, and winning. His scoring may not jump from 16 points per game if Philadelphia stays healthy, but he can still matter plenty in the role he has now, especially as a scorer without the ball and as a defender at the point of attack.
For now, the talk is done and the waiting is almost over. Real basketball is getting close.
In Other News...
Draymond Green Just Sent A Clear Message About His Future Deals
LeBron James unusually small contract with the 76ers this offseason has already started to ripple beyond Philadelphia, and Draymond Green is one of the latest stars paying attention. James paired that deal with a $15 million annual endorsement agreement with Polymarket, a structure that changes the usual conversation around how elite players get paid and where they choose to make up value.
Green recently weighed in on the contract size and made clear he sees the appeal of a similar setup down the line. For a team like Philadelphia, the bigger point is how one of the leagues most recognizable players can reshape the market by leaning into endorsement money and flexibility, a model that could influence how others approach both their next contracts and the business around them. [Read more 🡒]
Joel Embiid Problem Could Decide How Far The Sixers Go
Joel Embiids value to the 76ers is still enormous, but the way Philadelphia uses him on defense may end up shaping the teams ceiling this season. The concern is not whether he can still anchor a defense in the paint, but whether the physical limitations that have started to show are making it harder for him to handle the wider demands that modern offenses keep putting on a center.
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
LeBron James has once again altered the balance of power in the East, and this time the ripple reaches straight through Philadelphia and New York. He confirmed that his original plan was to head to the Knicks in free agency, a move that would have instantly reshaped the rivalry, before the Knicks 2026 championship and long-awaited title breakthrough changed the equation. Instead, James settled on a two-year deal with the 76ers, adding another star to a roster already built around Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey.
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 🡒]