PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia 76ers opened the preseason with a 120-97 win over the defending champion New York Knicks on Monday night and saw some good things from their short-handed group. With LeBron James, Joel Embiid, and Tyrese Maxey sidelined, the Sixers focused on Jaylen Brown and VJ Edgecombe.
Brown had 22 points and Edgecombe had 12 points, seven assists, and four rebounds. Neither player played in the first half, but the two of them seemed to already be in sync and Brown acknowledged it after the win.
"I love VJ already," Brown beamed after the win. "That’s one of my favorite people in the world, and we just met. But VJ is gonna be great, and I’m excited to help him continue to thrive. His talent level is off the charts."
Brown, a
10-year veteran, has accomplished a lot in his career. He's a 5-time All-Star, a finals MVP, and is coming off a fantastic season in which he was named to the All-NBA Second Team. Meanwhile, Edgecombe is only entering his second NBA season. Either way, Brown sees something special in his new young teammate and can't wait to continue growing with him.
"I think we kind of see the game similarly," Brown stated. "We try to get the spots that we want to get to. We have some similar viewpoints, so even when we’re talking to each other, we’re on the same page."
Edgecombe, of course, had a lot of success against Brown's Boston Celtics in his rookie season. He made a big impact in his NBA debut before then having success in the playoffs against Philadelphia's rivals. He made an impact on Brown then and is continuing to grow that relationship with his new teammate.
"I think it was great," Edgecombe said of playing with Brown. "He was obviously aggressive, if you need him to be. At the end of the day Jaylen's gonna go out and play hard. He’s gonna be himself regardless. That's something we can't take for granted because, like I said, he's really good. He's really good. He’s a two-way player. It’s preseason. We’re figuring out each other against a different team instead of our every day in practice. It was good."
While Brown is still adjusting to Philadelphia in a new situation and trying to get ready for what's to come, it's obvious that he and Edgecombe are going to continue to grow their relationship and become an even better duo as time moves on. The friendship is obvious on the court and is likely to continue as they move forward.
"That's my dawg," Edgecombe said of Brown. "I love Jaylen, man. That’s someone I actually lean on for information. He’s super smart. He’s got that Cal Berkeley education, man. That’s someone I lean on. He’s a really great person. Yeah, that's my dawg. Like we actually really cool. Which is shocking because, what month is it? October. He just signed like two months ago. Yeah, it’s crazy."
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Jaylen Brown singles out VJ Edgecombe after Sixers beat Knicks at home
