As they prepare for a lighter week ahead – three games in the next eight days – the 9-7 Sixers are still trying to figure out who they are. As head coach Nick Nurse has frequently mentioned when asked about his rotation, there are many “moving parts” even as an identity has formed and grown.
Joel Embiid has not played in more than two weeks. Kelly Oubre Jr. will not play for another two weeks. Paul George missed the first two weeks and change of the season. Jared McCain missed the first two weeks of the season and is just now starting to look like himself. Dominick Barlow missed more than two weeks because of an elbow laceration. The parts have certainly been moving.
But not all of the circumstances have gone against the Sixers. In many ways, they have been quite fortunate in terms of unknowns swinging in their favor. Tyrese Maxey has performed like a full-blown superstar, even while his offensive production has slowed down of late VJ Edgecombe has easily outpaced expectations. Many depth pieces have stepped up in the wake of high-profile absences and proven to be reliable pieces.
Kicking off the week, a batch of notes in 5 Sixers thoughts, from McCain finally appearing to be on the verge of breaking out to the Sixers’ better-than-anticipated frontcourt depth and more:
Jared McCain on his best game in nearly a year
The Sixers’ home loss to the Miami Heat on Sunday afternoon was as forgettable as it gets for most of the roster. Maxey was good, not great. Edgecombe missed a game for the first time in his NBA career while Embiid, Oubre and Adem Bona remained out. Paul George played 20 disappointing minutes.
But there was one glaring positive, and depending on one’s view of Jared McCain’s upside is could be more important than all of that combined: McCain finally looked and played like himself, and for the first time since he was the Rookie of the Year favorite 11-plus months ago it looked like the 21-year-old guard was comfortable on an NBA floor. He scored 15 points on 11 shots and connected on three triples to give the Sixers an offensive jolt in a game in which his role expanded due to Edgecombe’s absence:
Jared McCain finally got going as a scorer in the Sixers’ loss to Miami on Sunday:
15 points
5-11 FG
3-4 3P
All five of McCain’s baskets against the Heat: pic.twitter.com/cSG0ZGLHCG
— Adam Aaronson’s clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 24, 2025
In the past, McCain has spoken about separating results in box scores from how he feels during games – a process that is especially important as he recovers from his torn meniscus last year. The results were the best they have been for him in a very long time on Sunday, but they seemed to match McCain’s improved mobility. How did he feel out there relative to previous games?
“It definitely felt the best,” McCain said. “I think each game is just getting more reps on the knee and more reps of movement. But I felt really good today, felt like I got a little burst from my first step. Just continuing to build off each game and the more minutes I play and the more time I’m in, I feel like I can get more reps up. Yeah, I felt really good, though.”
McCain declared it another one of the many “small wins” he is fighting for a championing. Isolating each and every goal has helped him not become overwhelmed by the enormity of the turnaround he must stage from what was such a low starting point.
“A lot of this whole recovery process has just been patience,” McCain said. “The biggest thing throughout this whole time is just trying to be patient on the next step and trying to take as many small wins as I can… Making my first shot, being able to take a hit and then take that step back on my left foot.”
So, what is the next small win McCain hopes to achieve?
“I think still getting good at running full speed at somebody, closing out, and then being able to take that next step of pushing off my left leg and cutting off somebody,” McCain said. “Still trying to get that on the defensive end, of course. And still on the offensive end, I think I can be quicker on my first step. But just getting there. It’s going to take time, and I know it’ll come.”
MORE: Sixers-Heat instant observations
Trendon Watford leans into physicality to get back on track
The other standout performer on Sunday was Trendon Watford, whose performance arc so far with the Sixers has been unusual. Watford missed all of training camp and preseason with a poorly-timed hamstring injury, but within a few games of joining the mix he carved out a niche as a jumbo-sized ball-handler. One would assume Watford is a difficult player to quickly get up to speed because of the unique nature of his game, but he almost immediately became one of the Sixers’ more impactful players and earned a starting job.
Then came struggles, and Watford really did not provide much juice for a little while. He lost that starting job and his playing time has gone down some. He needed to bounce back soon, and on Sunday he played what Nurse thinks was the second-best game of his season. Watford scored 19 points on 12 shots off the bench while also grabbing nine rebounds, dishing out seven assists and playing impressive defense. When Watford is near his best, it is a very enticing picture:
Nick Nurse believes Trendon Watford had his second-best game as a member of the Sixers on Sunday vs. Miami:
19 points (7-12 FG, 1-2 3P, 4-5 FT)
8 rebounds
7 assists
1 steal
1 block
Watford’s made shots, assists and key defensive plays against the Heat: pic.twitter.com/fwy69hejL7
— Adam Aaronson’s clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 24, 2025
Clearly, Watford was near his best on Sunday. And while he is not a terrific athlete for his size and has never been regarded as a particularly good or bad defensive player, Watford’s instincts on that end of the floor have stood out recently. But Nurse highlighted something else when asked about the 25-year-old’s standout showing.
“I thought he just played with just a lot of physicality and strength with the ball,” Nurse said. “He was making some hard drives to the basket, taking the hits and keeping his line and all that stuff, getting to the rim and finishing some of those as well.”
Asked about Trendon Watford’s strong showing on Sunday (19 points, 8 rebounds, 7 steals), Sixers head coach Nick Nurse highlighted Watford’s ability to absorb and play through physicality as a driver.
Watford: “That’s me… Just sort of getting back to being me.”
Some examples: pic.twitter.com/fNfQBQOME2
— Adam Aaronson’s clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 24, 2025
Moments later, Watford evaluated Nurse’s scouting report.
“I mean, that’s me,” Watford said. “Just being able to get in the paint, me being able to spray out, make plays for others. So I think I was able to do that [today], I think I’ve been able to do that earlier in the season. Just sort of getting back to being me, having my energy in the right spot and just trying to help this team out.”
Two new backup center options emerging
With Bona having missed four games (and at least one more) due to a right ankle sprain while Embiid has been sidelined, too, Nurse has had to get a bit creative piecing together 48 center minutes.
Andre Drummond has been an absolute godsend in this regard, but behind Drummond Nurse has opted to bypass rookie second-round pick Johni Broome. Instead, the Sixers’ pair of two-way power forwards, Barlow and Jabari Walker, have been tasked with sliding up to small-ball five roles.
The experiment, if one would prefer to call it that, has been successful so far. The Sixers have generally been quite competitive with either or both of Barlow or Walker manning the middle, even if both players might be optimized as bruising fours. Nurse has been adamant since training camp that Walker could slide up to the five when needed – “I’m honestly super familiar with it,” Walker told PhillyVoice in October. “I played, especially last season, I played more five than anything.” – and has recently praised Barlow’s ability to handle the role change on the spot.
“Probably the biggest thing is he’ll execute,” Nurse said on Saturday. “Like, we’re changing a ton of coverages; he’ll execute them, which is big, to keep us all on the same page. He can switch, he can be a part of our blitz packages, and he’ll not back down from any challenge from position one through five, he’ll try to fight them.”
Here is how Walker and Barlow have responded over the last week to the same question: how does sliding up to center change your focus and mentality while on the floor?
Walker: “Just being dirty, honestly, and just being more physical. Getting Tyrese and all the guys open, setting some harder screens, being in that dunker spot, cleaning up, getting big rebounds. Just some of the things I already do, just elevating it.”
Barlow: “Just different defensively. Probably have more responsibility just because you have to anchor the back line. But just playing. I mean, I understand that every day is going to look different and just [trying] to be ready for it.”
MORE: Samaki Walker provides son Jabari with the ‘foundation’ to achieve NBA dreams
Checking back in on two-way information
Whenever the importance of Barlow and Walker is mentioned, it should also be pointed out that for as long as they remain on two-way contracts their availability will be limited to the Sixers. The team has the means to convert one of them to a standard contract with ease, and could do some light shuffling to find another spot for the second player if the Sixers deem both of them worthy of NBA deals.
Tomorrow’s Sixers mailbag will have much more on the machinations of all of this. But, for now, here is another one of our periodic check-ins on where the Sixers stand as far as two-way availability is concerned:
PlayerGames usedGames remainingJabari Walker1634Dominick Barlow743Hunter Sallis743
However, for as long as the Sixers remain at 14 players on their standard roster, this situation is a bit more complex. Teams can only have two-way players active on 90 occasions while they sit below 15 players on their roster, which means the Sixers have 60 games remaining of two-way availability before they fill their open roster spot.
The new star of the Sixers’ media room
The most interesting figure to take the podium for Sixers postgame media availabilities is Bob Marley, Drummond’s dog, who is shockingly calm during press conferences:
Jared McCain is sharing the podium with Andre Drummond and Bob Marley. He feels this was “definitely” the best he’s felt in terms of mobility during the season and that he’s felt better with each game. Felt especially good about his burst/first step. pic.twitter.com/bJRFcWCyHu
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) November 23, 2025
Asked if his dog is always so quiet, Drummond said yes, and that “he’s like me in dog form.” It led to a surprisingly sad (and NFSW) exchange between Drummond and McCain:
A nice and easy question from @ginamizell to Andre Drummond about his dog, Bob Marley, led to a sad revelation that Jared McCain’s dog recently passed away. Drummond was not aware.
“That’s sad, man. What a bummer, what the fuck?”
Hard-hitting reporting today: pic.twitter.com/7SZgIZnHpE
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) November 23, 2025
MORE: Film breakdown of the best game Maxey has played and more
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