Sunday wasn’t the finest outing of the 2026-27 season for the Sixers.
They struggled defensively against the one-win Bulls, but came away with a 127-121 win in Chicago, moving their record to a league-best 9-2. An afternoon day game to close out a three-game road trip against a team collecting ping-pong balls is ripe for a letdown, but the Sixers took care of business.
Jaylen Brown was strong throughout, dropping a game-high 29 points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists. The five-time
All-Star’s numbers have been solid through 10 games with averages of 22.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He’s shooting 47.7% from the field (the exact same percentage he shot last season) with a decent uptick from three at 39.2%.
As the Sixers get set to welcome Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics to South Philly on Tuesday, things remain unsettled between Brown and his former organization. When it comes to Tatum, who Brown spent nine seasons with in Boston, there is no beef, but maybe some lamb chops and gravy, as the 2024 Finals MVP put it.
With all the attention and narratives, it’s hard to know what we’ll see Tuesday night. Will Brown be out for revenge or does he just want to get a win for his team?
There’s a way to do both — keep doing exactly what he’s doing.
While the numbers have been solid, closely resembling the numbers he put up in 2023-24 when he helped the Celtics win a championship, it’s been the little things with Brown.
Sunday’s win was a prime example. As the plucky young Bulls kept coming, Brown provided an offensive boost, nailing a pair of threes in the fourth to thwart multiple Chicago runs. With under a minute left, he made all four of his free throws and also came away with a steal on Josh Giddey while the game remained in doubt.
Earlier last week, he made similar plays against the Pistons. While the Sixers were in control throughout the game — with Brown scoring a game-high 30 — a late comeback attempt by Cade Cunningham in Detroit was enough to make any Sixers fan nervous.
A Cunningham layup cut the lead to 106-102. After a rough offensive possession that ended in a Joel Embiid missed three, the Pistons’ All-Star guard came charging up the floor. He pulled up for three in transition, but was blocked by Brown. If that shot goes in, it’s suddenly a one-point game with 38 seconds left. Instead, Brown’s rejection allowed the Sixers to close the game at the free throw line.
While we heard so much talk about Brown’s advanced analytics and on/off splits this offseason, it’s hard to quantify a guy who simply makes winning plays.
“He’s a really good player,” Nick Nurse said last week. “He just wins. He defends. He’ll rebound. Obviously, he can score from a bunch of different levels, and I’ll take all that any day. It’s been phenomenal to coach him.
“What does he bring? He brings an intangible of confidence to your team. Even maybe he’s not pouring in points or doing anything that you’re [seeing in the box score], but there’s a level of fight and competitive drive and winning spirit.”
Brown has flaws like any other player. Last season, he turned the ball over more than any player in the NBA. This season, he’s averaging 2.1 giveaways a game, on pace for his best season in that category since 2018-19.
There were concerns Brown wanted his own team, which supposedly led to the rift with Tatum. Thus far, there have been no issues there. In fact, Brown even openly said last week this was Tyrese Maxey’s team and they’re all following the second-longest-tenured Sixers’ lead.
When Brown is on the floor, the Sixers’ net rating is +5.4, per DataBallr. It’s -3.1 when he’s off. So, it’s cut and dry, the Sixers are a better team when Jaylen Brown is on the court.
And just like his time with the Celtics, his current team has an excellent record.
His best path to revenge against his former team is to do what he does — win.
“Listen, the dude is tough and he wins. I’ll take that all day long,” Nurse said. “Makes a lot of winning plays, man. He’s a winner.”
