The Sixers finished their three-game road trip on a high note, beating the Jazz 126-116 in a matchup between top rookies VJ Edgecombe and Ace Bailey. Edgecombe secured his sixth double-double of the season, scoring 22 points alongside a career-high 13 rebounds.
Here’s what stood out.
The Sixers and Jazz met a few weeks ago, but fans were left waiting for this rookie matchup as Edgecombe missed the game, recovering from a lumbar contusion. In their first opportunity to face each other at the NBA level, both rookies showcased why they were consensus top-five picks.
Both rookies scored 20-plus points, but Edgecombe separated himself not only as a rebounder, but in clutch time as well, with six points, three rebounds and an assist down the stretch, along with some impressive defensive play that limited the Jazz to just 22 points in the fourth quarter.
Ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft, there was a mountain of discourse surrounding who the Sixers should draft with the third overall pick. This matchup was a reminder of why both players were linked to Philadelphia—but also why the Sixers ultimately felt comfortable choosing Edgecombe. That’s no insult to Bailey, but a testament to the impressive play and potential Edgecombe has shown.
The Sixers needed a strong second-half performance to secure the comeback win against the Jazz despite their active tanking. Still, a win is a win as they say, and Philadelphia has now won four of their last five games, and have worked their way back into the upper end of the play-in tournament, currently sitting as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.
As encouraging as those wins have been, it’s important to keep proper context. The Sixers have not won against a team with an above .500 record since Feb. 26, against the Miami Heat. Philadelphia is getting by, doing the minimum, that is beating the teams; arguably, any team should beat nightly, but context goes both ways, and in the interest of fairness, considering who is missing from the Sixers’ rotation, it’s hard to ask much more than beating the teams they should.
The Sixers’ chances of doing anything positively noteworthy are reliant on the ability of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Paul George and Kelly Oubre to not only return to the court but to build chemistry in what little time remains and, most importantly, remain healthy if at all possible.
The Sixers are heading back home as they welcome back Jared McCain to Philadelphia as the Oklahoma City Thunder visit. This will be McCain’s first matchup against the team that drafted him, and after a number of Thunder players were ejected Saturday night against the Wizards, there’s a chance he could have a sizeable role in their place.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. EST on Monday, March 23.
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.
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