Dean Wade came to Philadelphia for nights exactly like this one.
The Sixers’ latest stop in Indianapolis was never going to be just another October game. In a conference packed with teams that believe they can matter, Wednesday night against the Pacers fit the profile: competitive, crowded, and the kind of measuring-stick matchup that can expose a team fast.
“I wanted to play for a competing team still," Wade told PhillyVoice before the Sixers wrapped up their shootaround. "Coming from Cleveland, I didn't want to go anywhere that wasn't competing."
He made his choice, and it dropped him into a brutal Eastern Conference landscape. The Sixers opened against the Knicks and Cavaliers, last season’s conference finalists, then saw the schedule keep tightening.
They faced the Bucks, a team projected to be among the worst in the NBA despite several accomplished veterans, and then took their first loss of the season to the Pistons, who won 60 games and owned the East’s best record a year ago. After Indiana, the Sixers are slated to see the Knicks again at home before heading to Charlotte to face a Hornets group that was the NBA’s best team in the second half of last season.
There really is no breathing room in this conference. At least 11 teams think they belong in the playoff conversation, and the East looks deeper than it has in years. That leaves little room for casual nights, especially for a team expected to contend.
The contrast with last October is hard to miss. At this point a year ago, the Sixers were off to a 5-1 start and looked like a surprise early on after the mess of the 2024-25 season. They had managed that run despite the usual uncertainty around Joel Embiid, and it seemed, for a moment, like they might have found a way through it.
But that path was softer than the one they face now. Three of those first five wins came as heavy favorites.
They had to grind past a Washington team that they mostly sleepwalked through before closing strong. They barely edged the Hornets with a late go-ahead three.
They also went to Brooklyn and handled the Nets.
That stretch created some real buzz in the moment. Adem Bona was blocking everything and looking like a quality backup center.
Quentin Grimes flashed like a possible Sixth Man of the Year candidate. Trendon Watford looked like a useful bench piece.
In hindsight, though, that group got to shine against weaker competition.
This version of the Sixers has been built very differently. New President of Basketball Operations Mike Gansey reshaped the roster by letting Grimes and Kelly Oubre Jr. walk, adding Wade and Anfernee Simons, trading Paul George for Jaylen Brown, and then signing LeBron James.
James’ arrival changed the way the league sees Philadelphia. The Sixers are now viewed as the most talented team in the NBA, and everyone knows it. Even in preseason, when they unveiled their star-heavy starting lineup for the first time, the Nets pressed them full court and played with the kind of edge you’d expect in a far bigger moment.
“It’s good to see that now, and get the feel of it,” Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said after that exhibition. “I think we'll see some of that throughout the year, so it's good to see it now.”
That’s the reality of this season: pressure from the jump, and not just from opponents. The league has already been hit by a wave of injuries, and the regular season is always a test of survival. Philadelphia has its own health questions to manage, especially the daily uncertainty around Embiid and the need to monitor the workload of James, whose 42nd birthday is about two months away.
If the Sixers are going to get through the season in good shape, they’ll need more than star power. Tyrese Maxey has already made a strong early case as an All-NBA level player, and the team’s top names have to keep producing. But they can’t carry it all by themselves.
Wade is the kind of role player who can help steady everything. He does the small stuff, doesn’t need the ball, and understands how winning teams function over the long haul. That’s part of why he matters here, especially for a roster that now has to absorb a lot of adversity.
"You realize sometimes simplicity is just key, and you don't overdo it. And I think it kind of confirms a lot for me with what I'm learning and where I'm growing," Jabari Walker said of Wade during the preseason.
"Seeing guys like that get paid, it’s like, 'Okay, just knock down the corner three, play defense, be out of the way, be a great person.' And that's the road I'm trying to follow."
Wade took that in with a grin when he heard it. He knows what kind of value he brings, and the Sixers are going to need that value because their preseason depth has already been chipped away by injuries. Ariel Hukporti is out for the season, and every other player on the roster has a route to helping at some point.
That’s what this month - and probably this whole conference - is going to demand. The East is a gauntlet, and the Sixers are going to need everybody to survive it.
In Other News...
Sixers Could Catch Pacers At The Perfect Time Wednesday
Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe are expected back in the 76ers lineup Wednesday night against the Indiana Pacers, giving Philadelphia a major boost after both sat out the previous game with injuries. Even with those reinforcements, the Sixers are still working around several absences of their own, including Dominick Barlow, Tacko Fall and Jabari Walker, so the rotation is not exactly at full strength yet.
Still, the timing could matter. Indiana arrives with its own injury concerns, and the Pacers have several players on the report, including some key names who are either out or in question for the matchup. For a Sixers team trying to stabilize itself, this is the kind of spot where getting Embiid back can change the feel of the night quickly, even if the full picture on the other side is still coming into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Adem Bona Just Put Real Pressure On The Sixers Backup Center Race
A recent run of minutes gave Adem Bona the kind of opportunity the 76ers have been waiting to see him seize. In 25 minutes, he finished with six points, 13 rebounds and three blocks, a line that underscored why the coaching staff had already envisioned him as part of the center rotation. With injuries thinning the big-man group and Andre Drummond gone, the pathway behind Joel Embiid has opened wider than expected.
Bonas case is built less on scoring than on the traits Philadelphia needs most when Embiid sits: activity, rim protection and work on the glass. The competition for backup center minutes is still shaped by who is available, but Bona has clearly put himself in position to be the primary option off the bench. For a team trying to preserve Embiid while staying solid in the frontcourt, that is no small development. [Read more 🡒]
Why The Nets Wanted No Part Of Jaylen Brown
Before Jaylen Brown ever got to Philadelphia, the Nets apparently had a chance to bring him to Brooklyn and passed. According to league insider Brian Lewis, Boston floated Brown in trade talks, but Brooklyn declined in large part because of his close relationship with Kyrie Irving, a connection the organization apparently did not want to revisit after the turbulence of Irvings run there.
For the Sixers, the backstory is part of the larger appeal of landing a player who has settled in and produced right away. Brown is performing well this season, and while the Brooklyn angle is mostly a what-if now, it helps explain why his arrival in Philadelphia mattered beyond the normal trade chatter. The Nets may have had their reasons for staying away, but the Sixers are the ones benefiting from what they saw as a clean fit. [Read more 🡒]