2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 14
VJ Edgecombe – 4
Joel Embiid – 3
Andre Drummond – 2
Paul George – 2
Dominick Barlow – 1
Adem Bona – 1
Justin Edwards – 1
Quentin Grimes – 1
Jared McCain – 1
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1
As far as this road trip is concerned for Philadelphia, it’s the exact reverse of the meme of the horse drawing that started like a photo-realistic drawing and ended as a child’s chicken scratch.
After blowing the game in the fourth
quarter in Chicago, and (understandably) getting crushed by a pissed-off Oklahoma City Thunder squad, Philadelphia has now won three straight games in advance of returning home for a Monday night contest against the Nuggets. Saturday night was one of their best performances of the season, opening up a lead in the second quarter, not falling into their usual third quarter collapse, and then putting their feet down in crunch time to seal a comfortable victory. With a 130-119 win, the Sixers have now won both games in New York this season, and it’s time for the league to take a real hard glimpse at everything Philadelphia has when all its pieces are available. Before doing that, though, let’s hit up Bell Ringer.
For a full game recap, click here.
Tyrese Maxey: 36 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers
The First-Team All-NBA case continues to build for Tyrese, who has now substantially outplayed a consecutive Second-Team member in Brunson twice in a couple weeks. Maxey definitely received more open looks than normal, with a fairly healthy supporting cast playing well and making life easier for him. But he still has to knock down those six threes (on nine attempts) and few players in the league are able to convert the shot variety, distance and volume that Tyrese now does on a regular basis. He also made his fair share of difficult ones (a midrange stepback in the fourth quarter was particularly nasty), and Brunson was often just left in the dust.
Meanwhile, Maxey himself was an impactful defender, making a handful of splash plays, including one that led to an easy transition bucket. Maxey can basically get and make any shot he wants at this point, and he has improved to the point of being a positive player on what was once his weaker side of the ball. He just dropped 36 points on the road and it felt like just another day at the office. The young man is putting together a truly special season and if the Sixers keep piling up their fair share of wins, lofty accolades will follow.
VJ Edgecombe: 26 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers
Safe to say the bright lights in the Big Apple are not too much for the rookie. Edgecombe has now been outstanding in both wins in Manhattan, with two-way play and crunch-time chops that you’d be thrilled to get from a guy in his prime, let alone a 20-year-old with fewer than 30 NBA games under his belt. Don’t let the fact that Jalen Brunson had 31 points fool you; a lot of those points came against other Sixers defenders, as VJ did an excellent job against the Knicks’ star guard once again. Only having two personal fouls while logging substantial time against a master grifter like Brunson is an incredible feat in itself.
He chopped up New York on the other end as well, especially in the first half where he shot 7-of-10 from the field for 18 points. Then, Edgecombe once again proved that he has ice water in his veins in the game’s final minutes. He blocked a Mikal Bridges’ three in the corner, stole an inbounds pass at one point, and made a crazy play where he faked a pass in the lane before rising up for the dunk. Dude is a straight winner.
Joel Embiid: 26 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 turnovers
Embiid helped silence the opposing boo birds at the Garden with an efficient night that saw him go 9-of-15 from the field and 8-of-12 from the free throw line. He baited Mitchell Robinson a few times, keeping the Knicks starting center on the bench with foul trouble for much of the first half; Robinson finished with just 19 minutes played. Joel didn’t need to take over this game by any means, and didn’t force anything, playing within the flow of the offense, setting screens to free up teammates and hitting open cutters with nicely-placed passes. He even had his first dunk of the season to cap off his night.
