NBA Scout Previews the 76ers’ Season: The One Big Question Philly Needs to Answer

Without a doubt, the 76ers had the best offseason of any NBA team.

Nobody saw both of their two biggest moves coming. The Celtics were likely to trade Jaylen Brown, sure, but to a fellow competitor in the East? And who thought LeBron James would be packing his bags for Philadelphia? When all was said and done, the 76ers exited the offseason with championship expectations and a starting five that has combined for 36 All-Star appearances and five MVP awards.

Tyrese Maxey. VJ Edgecombe. Jaylen Brown. LeBron James. Joel Embiid. A superteam level of star power.

“The question with the 76ers is like, who’s your go-to guy when you need it? Because they got a bunch of guys that can create,” an anonymous NBA scout told Sports Illustrated. “I know everybody’s saying it’s Tyrese Maxey, Maxey’s the guy, but Jaylen Brown was an MVP candidate last year. He had an unbelievable season. He carried a Boston team, and I don’t think he wants to take a back seat just because he got traded. And then you got LeBron who is going to want the ball. I don’t know how it’s going to all play out with that group. Who’s going to fill what role? And you still have freaking Joel Embiid, what are his expectations?”

True, there is only one ball, and every starter aside from Edgecombe has averaged 20 points per game over their career. Edgecombe, the No. 3 pick a year ago, is coming off a fantastic rookie campaign in which he logged 16.0 points on 35.4% shooting from three-point range. Now, he’ll take a back seat most nights.

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“The guy that I think is going to struggle the most is VJ Edgecombe,” the scout told SI. “I think VJ was about to take a huge jump, and that opportunity’s not going to be there for him just because he’s not going to get the ball a lot. He’s just going to be a role player. So I want to see how they balance it all. Who’s willing to take less, right? You remember when Boston won their championship with KG, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen? All those guys played a lesser role for the greater good. Do they have the personalities there to take less for the greater good? I just don’t know.”

But health is the biggest question of this team. LeBron turns 42 in December. Embiid hasn’t played 40 regular-season games since the 2022–23 campaign. If everyone stays healthy, Philly has a real chance of representing the East in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2001. But … what if things go pear-shaped?

“Who will get the blame? My anticipation is that they blame Joel first,” the scout told SI. “And I just don't know if Nick Nurse is the guy to manage all of that. I don’t see him being very good at that. He had a rocky year last season. He doesn’t have a history with Brown or LeBron. So how does he develop that relationship and trust factor? With one year on your deal? So it’ll be an interesting dynamic with that group.

“Now, are they talented? Yeah, they’re really freaking talented, but they got to put it all together.”

The 76ers open their season Oct. 20 with a matchup against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Offseason recap

Who’s in: Jaylen Brown, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tacko Fall, Ariel Hukporti, LeBron James, Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade
Who’s out: Andre Drummond, Paul George, Quentin Grimes, Kyle Lowry, Kelly Oubre, Jr.

Aside from the big swings to acquire Brown and James, the 76ers also added to their bench in a big way. Wade has flown under the radar his whole career in Cleveland. At 6’9”, he can guard pretty much any position and will be able to fill in to the starting lineup when James needs a night off. Caldwell-Pope is a true veteran who has been incredibly durable over his career until he missed a good chunk of last season in Memphis after undergoing surgery on his right pinkie finger. Simons can score in bunches as a career 38.1% shooter from beyond the arc.

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The 76ers are well equipped depth-wise at every position aside from center, where they look vulnerable behind Embiid, especially now that Hukporti is out for the year with an Achilles tear.

SI’s prediction for the 2026–27 76ers

Record: 49–33 | Predicting the 2026–27 NBA Standings: Which Teams Will Rise, Fall and Surprise?

There are plenty of wins coming in Philadelphia this year. In our consensus standings, Philadelphia finishes fourth in the East with 49 wins, behind the Knicks, Cavaliers and Celtics. SI’s Chris Mannix predicts the 76ers will lose to the Spurs in the 2027 NBA Finals, while our other two NBA writers—Liam McKeone and Blake Silverman—both have the Sixers losing to the Cavs in the conference semifinals.

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