How the Sixers Have Overcome Their Lowest Point

It may be as simple as a role player catching a heater against bad competition. But the Trail Blazers, even with their mediocre record, have the personnel to bother a young perimeter player riding out a shaky season. Edwards still supplied 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting in that game.

Even against weak foes, he's not taking the easiest shots. His 3s aren't all toeing the line. He doesn't have an elite first step to blow by defenders and glide straight to the rim when the 3 isn't there.

The biggest difference is Edwards feels empowered to spread out his shot diet:

For most of the season, if the 3 wasn't falling, that was all she wrote for Edwards. He was loose with the ball and unreliable on defense. He's developed counter moves. Edwards is attacking closeouts, gathering the ball and scoring at the rim comfortably or getting to the foul line for a jumper off one or two dribbles. He's even made small strides as a creator for himself, using a hang dribble to trigger an off-the-dribble 3 or reverse-pivoting for turnaround jumpers in the mid-range if defenders wall him off.

Edwards has been so indispensable to Philadelphia over the last seven games that removing him from the full-strength rotation would be unjustifiable. Given how well he's played with the spacing of lineups featuring Edgecombe and Grimes, he should be able to succeed in groups with Maxey or Joel Embiid. The fantasy should be the lineups without Embiid and Maxey, though. Go heavy on the wings when the two best players are on the bench.

VJ Edgecombe's rapid ascent as a lead ballhandler

It is nothing short of remarkable that the guy who has slotted in at shooting guard for most of his first pro season has seamlessly accepted and exceled at increased responsibilities this late in his rookie year.

Edgecombe has managed to raise his assist rate about 22% since Maxey went down. That is all while lowering his turnover rate at the same time.

But perhaps as impressive is that Edgecombe has comfortably rewired his decision-making as a shooter.

This is what his shot diet looked like through 57 games:

It's a stark contrast to what his selection has been since Maxey went down with the finger injury:

Edgecombe has recognized that, for whatever reason, the 3 has abandoned him. Rather than be stubborn and try to fix that tool, he's abandoned it for the time being. Instead, Edgecombe has channeled his shots into something more effective in the name of maximizing his team's possessions.

It is not an exaggeration to say that Edgecombe's flexibility as a scorer has saved the Sixers during this stretch without Maxey.

He's gone from a catch-and-go decision-maker next to Maxey and a spot ballhandler while the star guard rested to the one who cataylzes most possessions in his absence. He's suddenly operating out of ball screens like a seasoned pro, snaking the action to get to the mid-range or fiddling with defenses to get to the rim.

Nick Nurse wants Edgecombe taking at least 20 shots per game right now. Edgecombe is not breaking defenses with his passing chops yet. A lot of the assist volume is coming on simple reads one pass away.

But the efficiency he's demonstrated with the ball in his hands raises an important question for the Sixers, now and in the future.

Is the best version of this team putting the ball in Edgecombe's hands?

The answer may be 'yes' for two reasons. First, Edgecombe is simply taller than Maxey. He can inherently see passes that Maxey cannot. Second, getting Maxey off the ball more will modernize the team's 3-point attack. He was a dynamic, explosive scorer when James Harden was the point guard. Maxey is still a dynamic, explosive scorer, to be clear. But deploying him off the ball makes him one of the game's most dangerous shooters.

The best version of today's and tomorrow's Sixers can't be 24th in the NBA in 3-point percentage. Every night can't be an uphill battle to win the math game.

Quentin Grimes, to the rack

Amid all this success for Edwards and Edgecombe, there have been moments when the team needs a more senior scorer to step up. It's been a sharp rollercoaster of a season for Grimes. But he's been an absolute gamer lately.

More than half his shot volume was 3s through March 11, per CTG. Since Oubre went down, just 28% of Grimes' shots have been 3s.

His aggression within the arc has been, well, wild.

The eye test says the voume at the rim since March 11 should be higher than what the data says. But the uptick in efficiency is frankly astounding. He's been a game-changing player for the Sixers since Oubre went down.

The ball is simply in his hands much more.

The Sixers need to spend real time figuring out how to incorporate Grimes as more than just a catch-and-shoot 3-point option off the bench when they're back to full strength. They're simply leaving too much offense on the table when they shove him into that role.

If he's going to attack the basket the way he has recently, Nurse wants him driving at least 10 times a game. If he's doing that, Philadelphia can live with his helter skelter 3-point shooting. It would be wise for Nurse to play around with actions like this:

You certainly don't need Grimes making high-level playmaking decisions. But running him off a pindown that flows into a side pick-and-roll and pocket pass is a good way to weaponize his rim pressure and court vision in small windows.

The Oklahoma City Thunder come to town on Monday. It will get substantially more challenging before it gets easier. But the Sixers will get Paul George back on Wednesday. They should be getting Embiid back very soon. It'll be just in time for another slight lull in the schedule.

The Sixers are not out of the woods yet. But they've done the heavy lifting to pull themselves out of the darkness.