January 19, 2026
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
Trendon Watford is one of many Sixers still learning how to play alongside Joel Embiid.
Tyrese Maxey stood against a backdrop in the Sixers' training facility on Saturday and digested a question he has become more qualified than any other person in NBA history to answer.
What advice would you give to teammates getting used to figuring out how to best fit alongside Joel Embiid?
"It takes a lot," Maxey said. "You've got to have a good feel for the game. It's different. It's different. Most of us, we don't grow up playing with dominant bigs like that, that cause that much attention, or you've got to get the ball to them. So it's difficult and it's different. Once you figure it out, though, it gets easier for you every step of the way."
And as Embiid has enjoyed his healthiest stretch of basketball in more than two years over the course of the last three weeks, the Sixers have finally been able to explore what the best version of this team might look like. Even as Maxey ascends from fringe All-Star to borderline superstar, it is Embiid who will truly be at the center of any transformation into title contention, if only because his style of play is so uncommon and needs some level of accommodation.
However, particularly at power forward, the Sixers have leaned into different archetypes than in past years. A slew of new role players at that spot are learning on the fly what works and what does not work when Embiid is manning the middle.
Of those players, none can be described as unique quite like Trendon Watford, a 6-foot-8 point forward. Watford's first season with the Sixers has been in a constant state of flux; he missed training camp and preseason with a hamstring injury then well over a month during the regular season with a left adductor strain.
When Watford made his season debut, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse had no other option but to throw his unorthodox style into the mix and see how things shook out. For a little while, the picture was extremely promising: Watford had a triple-double in his first start and held onto that spot briefly. But then he went down again, and Nurse has slow-played Watford's reintegration into the mix, likely both to protect him from another injury and to avoid messing with a power forward rotation that has been solid.
One byproduct of all of this: Watford has spent very little time playing alongside Embiid. It is difficult enough for a team to incorporate Watford's unusual style when he is coexisting with four players filling more traditional roles. Doing it with Embiid also on the floor is an even greater challenge.
"When I'm out there with him, I really just try to be another ball-handler to play pick-and-roll with him," Watford said on Saturday. "...Me and Joel, we have a small sample size, obviously, playing together. But I think he trusts me to handle the ball and obviously I'm going to find him in the right spots to be able to cut off him. He can find me when he gets doubled and stuff in the post. So I think it's going good, but it's obviously going to get better the more I play and the more I can get some reps with him."
An interesting play to file away for when the Trendon Watford-Joel Embiid combination is under consideration: pic.twitter.com/n8Pwq497Mk
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) January 17, 2026
"I think kind of instinctive," Barlow said on Saturday. "[There are] definitely cues that we have, we talk about stuff like that at shootaround, but I think it's an instinct thing."
Dominick Barlow looks like he is clearly the Sixers' best option to play power forward when Joel Embiid is on the floor. Embiid found a cutting Barlow for three different baskets in Tuesday's win over Memphis, a significant factor in Embiid's season-best passing performance: pic.twitter.com/XrmX4Rnthv
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 31, 2025
A similar sentiment came from Jabari Walker, another two-way signee who has become a critical component of Nurse's frontcourt rotation. Walker has a set of skills designed to fit around great players. "Filling the gaps" is the terminology Walker used on Friday morning when asked about how he tries to accentuate Embiid's abilities when they share the floor.
"Playing with Jo is different," Walker said. "He attracts so much attention. Honestly, you're just filling the gaps. He kind of tells you with his eyes, or just his communication, where he wants to be. So just being ready [is the key] playing with someone like that."
This is a terrific read by Jabari Walker. The Sixers want to get the ball to Joel Embiid, but Brooklyn fronts him. It takes away Kyle Lowry's angle to make an entry pass, so Walker moves to the middle of the floor, where he can make a pass that takes Embiid right to the basket: pic.twitter.com/3Fu3ZwfsPj
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 24, 2025
Embiid recently credited Walker for doing all of the things Embiid cannot necessarily do on every possession, from going after loose balls to crashing the offensive glass. For years the Sixers have clearly prioritized shooting and floor spacing around Embiid, but in his more limited state as a mover, having some strength next to him can provide Embiid some mental relief. Barlow and Walker give him that. Embiid does not have to do all of the heavy lifting on defense and as a rebounder, even if it means he sees less open space when the ball is in his hands.
But all of that does not change this fact: when Embiid is in the game, the Sixers have the ultimate piece of leverage over opposing defenses. He is virtually unstoppable as a one-on-one scorer. It is why the most important thing Barlow remembers when he plays with Embiid is...
"I've learned that sometimes," Barlow said, "you've just got to get the hell out of the way. I'd say that's one of the biggest things I've learned. Just let him – be an outlet for him, but let him play, especially if teams aren't doubling him. Just let him play."
