Sixers' Andre Drummond Credits Offseason Changes for Lengthy Shifts

Following a 15 minute stretch of game time on Saturday night, Andre Drummond talked about changes that he made which lead to him being able to do it.

Mar 3, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Andre Drummond (1) looks on during a break in action in the third quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

On Saturday night, the Philadelphia 76ers took on the Charlotte Hornets, as they looked to build on their initial victory earlier on in the week. They'd do so once again with former MVP Joel Embiid in the starting lineup, as the Cameroonian looks to continue to ramp up to full speed.

This continued ramp-up could be seen in the minute restriction that Embiid was playing under, only managing to appear in a little over 20 minutes on the court for the second straight match. While the former MVP struggled in the season opener, finishing with only four points to his name, he would have much more success on Saturday night.

big fella drills his third triple of the game! pic.twitter.com/2Z3yq8JGQr

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 26, 2025

In his 20 minutes against the Hornets, Embiid would score 20 points, doing so on 63.6 percent shooting from the field, which includes his three makes from beyond the arc. Despite these efforts and the score between the two sides, Nick Nurse stood by the minutes limit, looking elsewhere on his roster to close out the match.

Andre Drummond's 15-minute shift against the Hornets

One player that he went to in the second half was Andre Drummond, who had yet to really make an impact during the regular season, only appearing in two minutes during the season opener against the Boston Celtics.

clean up aisle 1. 😤 pic.twitter.com/Cd6nqsoajL

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 26, 2025

Despite those struggles, there's a case to be made for feeling that Drummond’s contributions and efforts against Charlotte entirely flipped the game on its head, as he would score seven points while securing a crucial 13 rebounds for Philadelphia, which in part would supply the Sixers’ seven second-chance points in the fourth quarter.

One impressive part about the 32-year-old’s performance on Saturday night is that he took to the court for the entirety of the fourth quarter, which, when mixed with his time in the latter chunk of the third quarter, meant he played for 15 minutes and 48 seconds straight.

How has Drummond prepared for such long stretches on the court?

When reflecting on his long shift towards the end of the match, Drummond attributed it to his work in the offseason, which was all about getting him in a better condition.

“Stay in the shape and staying ready. I think my biggest thing, I think I said this earlier when I saw you guys, that my only goal for this summer is to come back in the best shape I can be in, you know, for when moments like that do come where I have to play 15 straight minutes,” Drummond told the media following the win. “And I got to do it at a high level, and I think I did a good job of that today.”

The Sixers’ veteran elaborated on his preparation for his 14th season in the NBA, explaining that it was a lot of cardio involved as well as a change in his dietary plan, despite that being when players tend to be a bit more relaxed about things.

“Changed the diet, just ran more, less cheat days, you know, summertime is usually the time where guys like to enjoy the finer things in life,” Drummond explained. “So, you know, really, really buckled down and focused on what really mattered.”