NEW YORK – Whenever VJ Edgecombe submits another standout performance, a new group of reporters learns that he will never gush over his own individual exploits. If Edgecombe is asked about his teammates, though, he will quickly become giddy.

On Saturday night, Edgecombe gave half-hearted answers to questions about how he dominated the Madison Square Garden stage once again in another Sixers statement victory over the New York Knicks. But when Edgecombe was asked about his teammates, he could hardly contain his excitement. He said that Tyrese Maxey is a superstar, whether he wants to be called one or not. He gave Joel Embiid the same label. "I don't care what anybody say," he said with a smile before declaring that Paul George is also still a superstar.

“I’m just super happy to see Joel and Tyrese and PG on the floor," Edgecombe said. "I'm super happy, man. It’s like the little kid in me is playing alongside the superstars that I was watching, you know? Yeah, man. This is great.”

For the first time in 2026, it is time to start the week with 5 Sixers thoughts, beginning with how Edgecombe is learning to thrive alongside his high-profile teammates:

VJ Edgecombe capitalizing on the "gravity" of his teammates

Embiid and Maxey have a dominant two-man game that has tortured opposing defenders for years; both players can score in so many ways that it is nearly impossible to defend them two-on-two. The Sixers have leaned harder into their combined dominance of late, and they opened the second half at Madison Square Garden by running Maxey-Embiid empty pick-and-roll over and over. That means the ball-handler and screener are on one side of the floor and the other three players are on the other side to provide as much space as possible.

"I mean, if they let them go play two-on-two all game," Edgecombe said, "I know we'll live with it, for sure. But it's going to be a long night for the opposing team."

The Sixers ran the exact same thing over and over and over and continued scoring in different ways. Edgecombe and Paul George both get chances to spot up for open threes and attack driving lanes, while fours like Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker function as off-ball screeners and cutters. The thread below shows all of the Sixers' baskets early in the third quarter from the same play:

The most encouraging aspect of the Sixers' road trip was the cohesion they were gaining offensively. They have had high-scoring nights where multiple key players had standout showings, but dating back to last season their offense has often looked like high-powered scorers taking turns doing their own things. Everyone looks like part of one collective now. The best example is Edgecombe learning how his best skills can translate to capitalizing on the massive amount of attention Embiid and Maxey are constantly drawing.

"There's going to be the spot-up threes for him, which he's stepping into and taking," Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said. "There's going to be space for him to charge down the lane with the ball, which he's doing."

As he often does, Edgecombe simplified it to just playing basketball. When he is playing alongside three teammates he believes are superstars, he is happy to fill in the gaps and do much of his scoring in opportunistic fashions. Over and over, Edgecombe pointed to the "gravity" those players have.

"I've just got to be ready to make a play," Edgecombe said.

MORE: Edgecombe's clutch gene, more from road trip

Quentin Grimes hitting his stride again

December was not kind to Quentin Grimes, and he should be happy his worst month as a member of the Sixers to date is over. Grimes shot below 40 percent from the field in all but two games last month, but has given the Sixers a terrific three-game stretch to begin January. Grimes gave the Sixers important minutes in their overtime win over the Memphis Grizzlies before finally getting hot from long range again to put away one of his former teams, the Dallas Mavericks:

"I'm just staying aggressive at all times," Grimes said at the Sixers' morning shootaround before playing the Knicks, another one of his former teams, on Saturday. "Playing my game, offensively stay in attack mode or just making plays for myself and my teammates, being aggressive defensively... Just playing my role whenever I get in there."

Later that day, Grimes played a tremendous all-around game to help beat the Knicks, another one of his former teams. He shook off a rare pair of airballs from the corners and did a little bit of everything to help the Sixers notch another win. As Jared McCain continues to struggle, Grimes being able to log what Nurse calls "starter minutes" off the bench is imperative. He had six rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks on Saturday, marking one of the best non-scoring games of his Sixers tenure:

"Q was big," George said. "I know a couple of shots he wished he could take back early on, but he got his rhythm, he got that steal that kind of sparked a change for him confidence-wise offensively. But defensively, he was great. He was getting into the ball, pressuring ball-handlers, big rebounds, just getting deflections, getting steals. And he made some big shots down the stretch, too. So it's a big lift."

Adem Bona talks playing next to Joel Embiid

Back on Dec. 23, Nurse played Adem Bona at power forward next to Embiid, a configuration he looked at closely during the preseason but never ended up cementing within his rotation. It was done out of necessity that night; the Sixers were without several rotation pieces. Embiid made a comment after the game that if the Sixers wanted to lean on that combination moving forward, they would need to work on it ahead of time.

Now back from their annual Disney On Ice swing, the Sixers might have something here. It is a specialized look that is best being utilized in short bursts against particular matchups. But it can be a real weapon, and it helped the Sixers escape victorious in Memphis last week:

Bona has unequivocally earned the minutes that have belonged to Andre Drummond for much of the season, and his budding partnership with Embiid means there is even more playing time for the 22-year-old to potentially earn. On Saturday morning, Bona chatted with reporters about what he has learned of late when it comes to coexisting with Embiid.

"I think being out there with him, [my focus] is obviously contributing defensively," Bona said. "Whenever we play against teams that run two bigs, I think that's most of the time we go to me and Joel on the floor. I've contributed defensively and offensively, keeping the pace of the team running down the floor faster. Especially for our team, that's a big thing playing with Joel."

Nurse said a handful of hours later that when he pairs up Embiid and Bona, he will aim to have three high-level shooters surrounding them to ensure the team's spacing around Embiid does not get disrupted.

"It's going to have to be," Nurse said. "I think that whoever's playing that four, any of our bigs, we've got to have shooting in the other three spots, whoever that is. I think that's for sure."

Embiid is such a significant scoring threat inside and outside of the paint that one non-shooter next to him is fine, but more than that makes it dicey.

"Obviously when I'm on the floor with Joel the spacing is really important because he's also posting up from the high post, sometimes the low [post]," Bona said. "So to be able to find the opening and also space the floor for him to be able to operate, also be available for him when he needs to pass when he gets double-teamed. It's just a combination of the work of the whole season and understanding, sharing the floor, what he wants from me and how I can assist him or assist the team and make it easy for him."

What does Embiid say to Bona about what he wants from his second-year backup?

"When I catch the ball, you have to be here," Bona said. "The main thing we talk about is the spacing. Also defensively, I try to figure out the best way where we can keep the best matchup for both of us... I try to get more of the mobile guys."

MORE: Cheap Sixers targets for trade deadline, New Year's resolutions

"The loudest part of the game"

During the Sixers' lengthy trip, Bona and Dominick Barlow both experience something very few people can understand: shooting a free throw with thousands upon thousands of fans screaming as loud as they possibly can, hoping you will miss and provide them with some sort of free item. The Sixers once had a Play-In Tournament game flip in their direction when Caleb Martin missed two free throws to give Sixers fans free chicken nuggets. In Chicago, the Bulls give away free hot dogs if an opposing player misses back-to-back shots at the line.

First, it was Bona to face the music after a miss and still knock down his second free throw:

Barlow did the same thing late in the game:

What is it like to experience that kind of noise?

"Obviously, it gets louder," Bona told PhillyVoice, "but I just zero in a little bit more, stay focused, because obviously I don't want to miss both."

Barlow, meanwhile, called those moments "the loudest part of the game" before cracking a joke.

"I get it: free stuff," Barlow told PhillyVoice. "If I was at the game, I would probably be the same way... I'm sure the fans want them to win, but they want the damn chicken sandwich."

An opportunity to bank wins

Going from two-plus months of short flights to a five-game road trip over the course of nearly two weeks is harsh. "I don't even know what day it is," Edgecombe said after Saturday's win in New York, and he was not joking around. The Sixers boarded a Christmas Day flight to Chicago, went from the cold weather there to beautiful weather in Oklahoma City, from there to frigid temperatures in Memphis, to the warmth of Dallas and then suddenly were in New York, where it felt like 10 degrees.