Five Reasons Why the Sixers Will Win Their Most Games Since 2001

Things had gone so poorly in the first two games of the season that Kyle Neubeck had to take a quick break from his honeymoon to calm aggressive seas back in Philadelphia.

The Sixers started 0-2. James Harden, after an uninspiring end to the 2021-22 season, opened the season with back-to-back 30-balls. A younger Joel Embiid was up to his usual antics—a slow start to the regular eason that would eventually proceed into an MVP-worthy butt-kicking tour.

But still, the Sixers were 0-2. It was music to the ears of the doom and gloom crowd.

forgive me for parachuting in from afar but if Harden is dropping 30 point games out the chute and Jo is doing his usual slow starting thing, everybody just chill out instead of declaring the team doomed or “same old Sixers” 2 games in.

good morning, goodnight, goodbye, ttyl pic.twitter.com/D5QNTmXrZ2
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) October 21, 2022

It's easy to be level-headed when you're enjoying life in the Maldives, many miles disconnected from the homeland.

But, as much as it pains me to admit it, Kyle was right (don't tell him I said that).

It got worse. The Sixers started 0-3 and then lost 25 games the rest of the regular season.

They took the Boston Celtics to the brink in the second round.

...And then they ended up being the same old Sixers.

What does any of this have to do with anything?

Despite the 0-3 start, it was the most successful regular season the Sixers have had since 2001, when they made the Finals riding the back of Allen Iverson.

The Sixers team you are about to watch looks much different.

Instead of Harden, there is Jaylen Brown. There is LeBron James. There is no need to rely so heavily on Embiid for everything on offense. There is V.J. Edgecombe.

It, by definition, cannot be the same old Sixers.

And yet, it wouldn't be surprising if the team that mastered the 2026 offseason got off to a slow start. Embiid isn't the only one with a history of slow starts. Teams that roster James typically come out of the gates in uninspiring fasion.

And yet, I'm ready to make a declaration with two weeks to go until the NBA world goes back to school.

This Sixers team will win the franchise's most regular-season games since 2001.

Here are five reasons why.

The thing we should've seen coming

You're not Nostradamus. I'm not Nostradamus. But one of the underappreciated features of acquiring James was that the Sixers added the most powerful player in the league at a time when everyone is guessing on when he'll call it quits.

In other words, it is good for NBA business to milk every last game out of him. You're sabotaging your own product by giving his team a large number of back-to-back sets and three-in-four-nights stretchs.

So the Sixers wound up with the fewest back-to-backs and sets of three games in four nights.

That, in theory, should spit in the face of load management for Philadelphia. James' minutes may be protected throughout the season, but those two features of the Sixers' schedule should enhance the availability of a player who has historically played as often as he possibly can.

If we're applying that logic to James, we should also apply that logic to Embiid. We can't predict who will get injured and how severe it will be. But on paper, there should be less maintenance built into this roster by sheer nature of the schedule.

It doesn't all come down to Embiid

The last decade of Sixers basketball can be summed up in one question.

Did Embiid play?

If he did, they had a chance against anyone. If he didn't, something special needed to happen on most nights for them to have a chance.

The introduction of Edgecombe last season, a better season from Paul George and an All-NBA leap from Maxey helped them find stability in Embiid's absence last season.

The artillery independent of Embiid is the best it's ever been.

The big man isn't available? You still have to deal with Maxey, Edgecombe, Brown and James in the starting lineup. Behind them

Supporting them is a bench led by Dean Wade and Anfernee Simons. Wade is the perfect compliment to the team's slew of offensive stars, a legitimate power forward content with risking it all to defend á la Alex Caruso without asking for many shots. Simons comes with his share of questions about playoff viability. But in the regular season, he's an unconscious shooter with exquisite skills both off the catch and off the dribble. Unlike most of the Sixers' bench guards in this era, he can actually use the shooting to set up the other levels of his scoring game.

Behind them are pure innings-eaters.

Will those same pieces build the equity to be playoff contributors? Who knows?

But the Sixers can be comfortable trusting Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who has lost a step defensively but surely hasn't forgotten how to shoot, to add value in the regular season. Dominick Barlow started for long portions of the regular season in 2025-26. He can be trusted in the regular season. I'm always hesitant to commit to a rookie drafted outside of the lottery, but Labaron Philon Jr. is likely already one of the team's three best ballhandlers. He can win battles in the regular season.

There are four names I didn't even mention. This thing runs deep.

Speaking of innings-eaters....

Even on nights when you have to remove Embiid and James from the equation, the acquisition of Brown keeps this group competitive with anyone.

No, Brown's handle with his left hand isn't quite as terrible as Stanley's is with his right hand in the warehouse basketball episode of The Office. His playmaking has historically never been good enough for the Celtics to pick him over Jayson Tatum.

But those are playoff problems that more exist in an ecosystem in which Brown is the undisputed top dog.

It would take severe, severe circumstances for that to ever be the case in Philadelphia. He will exist as an equal to his best teammates when the team is in its fullest form. But Brown is the perfect wing to devour minutes in the regular season. There is more time to rest between games. The quality of opponent deviates from one night to another. The Sixers will put him on the court and know that he's going to carry his weight against everyone.

No one on Philadelphia's side of the deal is batting an eye. But even the biggest Brown skeptics must admit that he's the perfect tentpole for 82 games. A reliable, productive force night after night.

"Only one ball"—a real phenomenon or a fallacy?

The conversation that surfaces every time a superteam is formed.

The remade Sixers are no exception.

And often times, it's a real issue for these juggernauts in their early days. Sacrifice has to come from someone. But you usually don't have superteams with starting lineups as deep as the Sixers' is.

Consider this—what happens if Edgecombe makes a leap on offense? A leap so big that defenses can't just automatically double off him to control the ball when one of the other big names has it?

Edgecombe exists as the key that makes the offense untouchable. Sure, there's only one ball. But if he can't be left alone, who is being left open to put two on the ball?

And if the conclusion is that the Sixers must simply be defended evenly, their biggest problem on offense is going to be deciding whose mismatch is most favorable on a possession-to-possession basis.

Even when the starters are inevitably broken into bench units, the Sixers can still have two or three players with All-Star pedigree on the court at all times.

Can anyone else in the NBA keep up with that?

Buy Embiid's health

I've consumed water, coffee and Diet Coke while writing this. No alcohol. This is a totally sober case. But, here I am, wondering if there's actually a likelihood that Embiid stays healthy.

I'm not thinking about the photos of Embiid that have emerged, his legs looking as strong as ever. I'm thinking about the genesis of some of his injuries. Some of it is surely luck. Many have posited that it has been caused by sub-standard conditioning. But there's some portion of it that has to do with a guy shouldering too much responsibility over the course of 82 games, just to have his body break down as his team traverses the playoffs.

There exists a not-so-crazy realm where Embiid trusts his comrades on offense and willingly takes a lower-usage role. If he does that, and has the wisdom to find competitive edge without being the fulcrum of the offense, Embiid is therefore preserving himself for defense, where his presence is of the utmost importance.

Does a commitment to defense over offense ensure that he stays healthy? No, not at all. But would I buy that a reduced workload on offense will lead to less wear and tear and more energy on defense, leaving Embiid less vulnerable to fatigued-related injuries?

Yes, I would.

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