May 16, 2026
Six days have passed since the 2025-26 Sixers season came to an end.
It has been an eventful period: President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey is out after six years. Head coach Nick Nurse will remain in place heading into his fourth season in Philadelphia. Bob Myers is running the show in the interim while leading the search for Morey's replacement, but Myers does not sound like someone ready to fade into the background.
As the organization gets started on its work to find a new "day-to-day" leader in the front office and mull potential additions to the roster, it must evaluate what is currently in place. Which players already on board can be cornerstones and which ones should be moved?
A fun exercise with the season officially in the rearview mirror: rewinding to the most impressive individual showings of the season.
Any and all optimists when it comes to the Sixers' current nucleus of talent will point to what it accomplished in three games against the Boston Celtics. Down 3-1 in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs, the Sixers stormed back to upend the team that has routinely gotten the best of them.
It would not have happened with Embiid, who just a few weeks removed from an emergency appendectomy played with such tremendous force that nobody wearing green could get in his way. Embiid capped off the most triumphant three-game stretch of his NBA career with a gem in Game 7 at TD Garden:
Joel Embiid in the biggest win of his career in Game 7 in Boston on Saturday:
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) May 3, 2026
34 points
12 rebounds
6 assists
Full highlights: pic.twitter.com/CLjIXZ4wpc
Embiid, speaking to reporters about two hours after the buzzer sounded, said there was no time to celebrate. Game 1 of the Sixers' second-round series against the New York Knicks was not even 48 hours away. Now that the season is dead and buried, perhaps Embiid will draw some satisfaction from finally beating a team whose dominance over him he lamented.
The league will release its All-NBA teams soon, and barring a massive surprise Maxey will be on one of them for the first time in his six-year NBA career. Coming off the only season of his career in which he did not make a pronounced leap, Maxey did not let it happen again. He was one of the most dynamic scorers in the NBA, continuing to torment defenses with his lethal combination of blazing speed and pull-up shooting accuracy.
On the second night of a back-to-back in Milwaukee, with Embiid unavailable, Maxey torched former Sixers head coach Doc Rivers' Bucks en route to the best game of his NBA career, willing the Sixers to a win:
THE BEST GAME OF TYRESE MAXEY'S NBA CAREER
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 21, 2025
54 points (18-30 FG, 6-15 3P, 12-14 FT), 9 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks on the second night of a home-road back-to-back.
All of Maxey's baskets, assists and defensive highlights in the Sixers' win @ Milwaukee on Thursday: pic.twitter.com/U08wEbtRrl
For a franchise with a frustrating amount of instability, Maxey is the most reliable thing about these Sixers. He plays as many games as he possibly can, logs heavy minutes, never seems to tire and has become a vocal leader. Still only 25 years old, he is a wonderful building block for this organization.
The first year and change of George's four-year max contract worth more than $200 million were as ominous as could be. Just when it did not seem like the signing could age any worse, George was suspended for 25 games after violating the NBA's drug policy.
But when George came back, he was a different player. The nine-time All-Star finally experienced scoring outbursts again; his explosion off the dribble improved dramatically after he had about seven weeks to do nothing but work on his body. That improved fitness – plus some ridiculous shot-making – helped George return to being one of the better two-way wings in the NBA:
Paul George registered his highest-scoring game as a member of the Sixers in Wednesday's win over the Wizards, submitting a brilliant shot-making display.
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) April 2, 2026
George scored 39 point on 15-22 shooting from the field and 6-12 shooting from beyond the arc.
All of George's baskets: pic.twitter.com/tAw1Xr4OaG
The Sixers would not have beaten Boston without George's two-way efforts; in addition to outstanding three-point shooting he provided terrific defense against both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Will that run make him a potential trade asset?
Edgecombe had a brilliant rookie season, and his NBA debut might not have been his single best all-around performance. He is a much better basketball player now than he was in October. But his historic debut in Boston set an incredible tone for what was to come for the remainder of his age-20 season:
All 13 of VJ Edgecombe's made shots from his historic NBA debut: pic.twitter.com/znMrLhJ5N6
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) October 23, 2025
It became clear quickly that Edgecombe possesses a real flair for the dramatic. From his two game-winners to his slew of other clutch plays on both ends of the floor and his heroic playoff showings against Boston, Edgecombe has demonstrated zero fear of any moment or spotlight. It will serve him well moving forward as Maxey's backcourt mate.
Nurse highlighted Barlow, then a two-way signee, as an early standout in training camp after the Sixers held their first official practice. The 22-year-old even surpassed Nurse's expectations, eventually proving to be the Sixers' best power forward and a player trusted to start for the majority of the season. Barlow has a perfect fit with Embiid, powered by his self-awareness. Barlow knows exactly how to fill in the right gaps to help the Sixers win, even if it does not lead to jaw-dropping stats in box scores.
One night in Los Angeles – days before he was signed to a two-year standard contract – Barlow completely erupted:
Dominick Barlow scored a career-high 26 points to go with 16 rebounds (10 offensive) in the Sixers' win over the Clippers on Monday night.
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) February 3, 2026
Full highlights from the best game of Barlow's young, promising NBA career: pic.twitter.com/OghfS0474k
If the Sixers cannot hammer out a long-term contract with Barlow this summer – perhaps something in the range of three years and $13 million – expect the team to exercise his team option for 2026-27 worth $3,415,000. It will be a bargain.
All season, the Sixers performed very well on the second legs of back-to-backs – no team in the NBA played on consecutive days more often than the Sixers, so it was a necessary ability. In Nurse's view, it started with the very first back-to-back of the year. Embiid only had 20 available minutes against the Washington Wizards, and with the former NBA MVP on the bench down the stretch his sophomore backup Bona swung the game with tremendous energy and shot-blocking:
Adem Bona had five blocks in the Sixers' win in Washington on Tuesday, with all five of them coming in the last 12 minutes of the game. The final swat came after Bona put the Sixers ahead with a put-back dunk.
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) October 29, 2025
Full highlights from Bona's clutch closing effort: pic.twitter.com/JR8YKdTgTt
Bona had a rough go in the playoffs, but should still be expected to stick with the Sixers past the July 7 guarantee date in his contract. His third season will absolutely be make-or-break.
Payne did not make it through the end of the season with the Sixers – signed out of Serbia in February to replace Jared McCain, he suffered a late-season hamstring injury and was waived so his roster spot could go to a healthy player – but it would be disingenuous to highlight standout individual showings without mentioning his March 10 performance against the Utah Jazz.
Payne was nearly perfect that night, only missing one shot in one of the most efficient individual games in recent NBA history:
Cam Payne had the best game of his NBA career in the Sixers' win over Memphis on Tuesday:
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) March 11, 2026
32 points (9-10 FG, 8-8 3P, 6-6 FT)
10 assists
3 rebounds
3 steals
2 blocks
0 turnovers
Full highlights: pic.twitter.com/GGhLr89Pb6
The only problem for Payne: as he played the best game of his NBA career, Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo was en route to an 83-point performance, passing Kobe Bryant for the second-highest scoring total in the history of the league. It made for an entertaining postgame scene as the Sixers reacted to their own dramatic win and Payne's stellar night in addition to what had just transpired in Miami.
Payne, predictably, had some fun with it.
"I was worried about Cam Payne, honestly," Payne said. "Man, Bam can't take my night. Shoutout to Bam, though. I'm a big-time Kobe fan, so that's huge, for someone to score that many points in a game. But, man, I'm taking it, man. This is my night. March 10, it's all me."
