Happy New Year, Liberty Ballers community! We hope everyone is safe and healthy and ready to have a great 2026.
Your Philadelphia 76ers will begin the year in Dallas, taking on the Mavericks, a matchup that features two of the most exciting rookies in the NBA in Cooper Flagg and VJ Edgecombe.
The Mavericks have had a weird 2025-26, to say the least. They began the season 5-15 as Flagg, who was acting as the team’s point guard to start the campaign, got off to a rocky start. As the No. 1 overall pick
started finding his groove and All-Star big man Anthony Davis got healthy, the team started to play better, but they’ve hit another slump recently.
Coming into Thursday night’s matchup, Dallas sits at 12-22, having lost six of its last eight. Flagg, who just turned 19 a couple weeks ago, has been the Mavericks’ best player, averaging 19.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. The only thing that’s missing from Flagg’s game is his three-ball, but he got off to a slow start from deep in his lone season at Duke as well. The 6-foot-9 forward excels in the open floor and it will be up to the Sixers’ leaky transition defense to contain him.
Dallas is relatively healthy, as Davis will make his return to the lineup after missing two games with right adductor soreness. Kyrie Irving has yet to make his season debut while recovering from left knee surgery, while both Dereck Lively II and Dante Exum suffered season-ending injuries.
The Flagg-Davis frontcourt presents a difficult challenge for any team. Though undrafted rookie Ryan Nembhard gave the team a nice boost as a legitimate point guard, the two-way player has ceded minutes to fellow diminutive guard Brandon Williams over the last couple games.
Much like the Sixers, you don’t really know which Mavericks team you’re going to see on a given night. In the lone matchup this season in Philly, the Sixers struggled mightily with Dallas’ size before Jabari Walker helped provide a bit of physical presence late to help seal the win. Despite their issues, the Mavericks are 10th in the NBA in defensive rating, in large part because of their tremendous length.
The Sixers also boast a healthy injury report — as healthy as an injury report from the Sixers can be, at least. Joel Embiid is listed as probable while Kelly Oubre Jr. and Trendon Watford remain out, though both have been integrated into team activities this week.
The Sixers are coming off a thrilling overtime win in Memphis Tuesday night. Edgecombe came alive late and buried the game-winning three with 1.7 seconds left to snap the Sixers’ three-game losing streak. It was the first win when having all members of the team’s Big 3 on the floor. Embiid and Tyrese Maxey carried much of the offensive load, dropping 34 points apiece.
The team’s defense has been much better recently, but they struggled to contain Ja Morant as the electric guard looked like his old self with a 40-point performance. While there is no guard like Morant on Dallas’ roster — and the Mavericks have been one of the worst offensive teams in the NBA — the size of Flagg, Davis, P.J. Washington and Naji Marshall was difficult for the Sixers to contain and keep away from the rim. We’ll see if Embiid’s presence makes a difference this time around.
The Sixers go into this one with a 17-14 record, good for sixth in the East. They’re 19th in offensive rating and 14th in defensive rating.
Game Details
When: Thursday, January 1, 8:30 p.m. ET
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers
