CHICAGO -- The Philadelphia 76ers walked out of the United Center on Sunday afternoon with a 127-121 win over the Chicago Bulls to finish their 3-game road trip up at 2-1. The Sixers received huge performances from their stars as Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and VJ Edgecombe all performed well, but the bench unit made a big difference.
Jabari Walker, filling in for the injured Adem Bona as the backup center, was terrific coming up with nine points and 11 rebounds--five of which were on the offensive glass. He created so many extra possessions for Philadelphia all day long while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also chipped in with six points, six rebounds, and three assists, including a huge 3-pointer late to help the Sixers
seal the win.
"Jabari was great," said Embiid. "Obviously, we don’t offensive rebound a lot. He came in, gave us, you know, a bunch of looks, off rebounding, and then KCP, obviously huge on defense. The big 3 in the corner in the fourth quarter. That's what he’s been doing all season."
The second unit has been a big help in the early part of the season for Philadelphia as guys like Walker, Caldwell-Pope, Dean Wade, Anfernee Simons, and Bona have all played a huge role when they've been called upon. The Sixers have been able to lean on that group when they need a spark.
"Those guys have been great, ready to go," added Brown. "Our second unit has been pretty good to start the season as well. You might not get the notoriety or credit, but our second unit has contributed in different ways, different guys to help us win games. Anfernee, KCP, Dean, Jabari, Bona, all of those guys have been during the season have helped us win games, so our second unit has been ready to go."
The Sixers have a ton of star power, but depth is so important in today's NBA. When one looks at recent title runs, the bench units of recent champions all played a key role in the run to the mountaintop. Brown, who won a title in 2024 with the Boston Celtics, knows how important that second unit can be to a team's success.
"Super important, you know?" Brown finished. "We're a team, so you know it's a lot of focus on top guys or guys with a lot of notoriety. Basketball has always been a team sport. It's always been a five-on-five game, and it takes all of us. So we got to make sure we're all clicking on all cylinders."
The Sixers will move forward as they play host to the Celtics on Tuesday in another early season test for this group.
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Multiple 76ers give love to Jabari Walker, bench unit after latest win
