Sixers Are Playing With Patience When It Comes to Trendon Watford

One of the Philadelphia 76ers’ bigger acquisitions in the offseason came right as it began, when they agreed to a deal with Trendon Watford. The 24-year-old would help fill the shoes left by the departing Guerschon Yabusele, who made his way up to Madison Square Garden with the New York Knicks.

While there was initial excitement to see Watford don a Sixers jersey during the preseason, it would be put on hold after he suffered from an issue with his right hamstring during the team’s first practice session of the year.

Initially, Nick Nurse had explained that they weren’t entirely worried about the issue and expected the 24-year-old to partake in practice sessions while they were abroad in the Middle East for the NBA’s Abu Dhabi Games, but this wouldn’t be the case.

What happened instead was Watford being sidelined for the opening three games of the season, before making his Sixers’ debut against the Washington Wizards in late October - albeit on a minutes restriction.

Trendon Watford goes after a block. — Oct 28, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards guard Tre Johnson (12) shoots the ball over Philadelphia 76ers forward Trendon Watford (12) in the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Perhaps due to there being some rust from not playing for some time or just getting used to a new system, Watford’s performances during his first two appearances for Philadelphia were a little lackluster, putting up two points on 25 percent shooting from the field.

this sequence from Trendon Watford >>> pic.twitter.com/I4SrD8kD7r
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 3, 2025

However, all of this would change when the Sixers took on the Brooklyn Nets, Watford’s former team, as he would score 16 points on 77.8 efficiency, while also recording nine rebounds and seven assists - making it his best performance with Philadelphia yet.

What has Nurse made of Watford's start to the season?

Following the match, Nurse talked about Watford’s start to life with the Sixers, and the struggles he’s had to deal with, feeling that this continued run of appearances is good to get back into shape and get his knowledge of the system up.

"I mean, I think there hasn't been a whole lot of action for him, any kind of action, he didn't get cleared till, I don't know after the first game, if I remember right, or second game, and there hasn't been a whole lot of practice time that's, you know, simulating a game,” Nurse explained to the press after Sunday evening’s victory. “So again, I think he's got some minutes to get under his belt, to get his conditioning up and keep continue to get more comfortable.”

Watford’s next opportunity for minutes will come on Tuesday night, when the Sixers visit the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bulls, with tipoff slated for 8:00 p.m. EST.