Looking to end a three-game losing streak, the Philadelphia 76ers traveled down to New Orleans for the frontend of yet another back-to-back. Without Joel Embiid once again, the Sixers hoped to take advantage of a matchup against one of the league’s worst teams, but instead suffered yet another embarrassing loss in a season that has seen far too many.
Tyrese Maxey scored an inefficient 27 points, while Kelly Oubre added 25, but the Sixers found few other sources of offense and allowed the Pelicans to do what they wished on the other end.
Philadelphia’s 30-26 record is not reflective of the team that has taken the court in these now four consecutive losses. The team has now lost four straight games, three of which were against teams with sub-.500 records.
The Sixers have lost these games by an average of 22.75 points. That number is inflated by a 49-point loss to the Knicks, but each loss has come by double digits.
The continued absence of Embiid and Paul George certainly plays a role, but that is no excuse for what occurred Saturday night.
It’s not only that the Sixers lost, but also how they lost. A loss to a team that has struggled as the Pelicans have is disappointing, but not an embarrassment. What makes it particularly hard to swallow is the context around the game.
Again, Philadelphia was already coming off three straight losses. A team simply needs to find a way to stand tall at a certain point and stop the bleeding. Maybe not if they’re the Sacramento Kings, but the Sixers have portrayed themselves as a legitimate playoff team in the East.
Then, there’s the failure to show up in the second half. The Sixers were outscored by New Orleans by 23 points in the second half, allowing 69 total points. That’s significant for two reasons, as it shows how the Sixers, who had the day off on Friday, ran out of legs against a Pelicans team that spent last night suffering a 20-plus-point loss at the hands of the Giannis-less Milwaukee Bucks.
For the Sixers to be the team without legs in that situation speaks volumes. The team has leaned far too heavily on Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe all season long. The hardworking backcourt tandem takes pride in their ability to bend without breaking, but they have been bent so far out of shape that they cannot contribute as they once did.
Whether it’s adjusting practice habits, an occasional night off, or an overall reduction of minutes on a nightly basis. All of those options should be on the table, especially the latter.
The unfortunate truth is that this is unlikely to happen as the Sixers—especially head coach Nick Nurse—are desperate to turn this recent streak around, and the very suggestion of reducing the role of two of your best players is counterintuitive.
Finally, there’s the defensive performance. Whether due to inability, exhaustion, or lack of interest, likely a combination of the three, the Sixers’ performance on that end in this game was simply inexcusable — and it’s been trending that way for weeks.
Hall of Fame head coach Gregg Popovich once said that “Defense is a chore, not a choice.” It’s certainly felt like a chore for the Sixers more often than not this season, but the team has routinely shirked their duties, especially as of late.
Over their last 20 games, the Sixers are the fifth-worst team in the NBA by defensive rating (118.57); they are joined by the Wizards (119.0), Nets (119.3), Jazz (121.8) and Kings (122.2).
The Sixers will have little time to correct course as they prepare for their next matchup.
Life will not get easier soon for the Sixers as they will travel to Minnesota for a Sunday night matchup against Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves. Philadelphia has not yet released their injury report, so there is a chance Joel Embiid could return to the court, but even if he did, Minnesota is far from an easy opponent.
Wolves defensive anchor Rudy Gobert will miss the game due to a one-game league suspension after accruing his seventh Flagrant Foul point of the 2025-26 regular season.
Tipoff between the Sixers and Timberwolves is set for 7 p.m. EST.
Unless otherwise stated, all stats included in this article are via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass, Basketball Reference or Team Rankings. All salary information via Spotrac.
For the latest on your Philadelphia 76ers, follow Zach on Twitter and Bluesky.
