Sixers Rumors

Joel Embiid Fined $50K By NBA

November 2nd, 2025 at 1:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Sixers center Joel Embiid has been fined $50K by the NBA for “making a lewd gesture on the playing court,” the league announced today (via Twitter).

Embiid made a crotch-chop gesture after making a basket through a foul during the first quarter of Philadelphia’s one-point loss to Boston on Friday (Twitter video link). He has been fined multiple times in the past for that same celebration.

The fine is a drop in the bucket for Embiid, who is earning $55,224,526 this season on his maximum-salary contract. Through four games, the seven-time All-Star is averaging 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.0 block in 22.3 minutes per contest. His shooting line is .460/.389/.800.

Embiid, 31, will miss Sunday’s game in Brooklyn due to left knee injury management, per the league’s official injury report.

The 76ers have gotten off to a strong start to the 2025/26 campaign, currently holding a 4-1 record.

Community Shootaround: NBA’s Undefeated Teams

October 31st, 2025 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

If NBA fans had been polled prior to the season about which four teams would be the last to lose a regular season game, it’s safe to assume the defending champion Thunder would have received a ton of votes. So it doesn’t come as a huge surprise that Oklahoma City – which set a new NBA record by winning a 21st consecutive game against an Eastern Conference opponent on Thursday, per Nick Gallo (Twitter link) – is the league’s only 6-0 team entering Friday’s games.

But fans would presumably have hard a much tougher time predicting the other three teams in that undefeated group alongside the Thunder. After 10 days of regular season action, the Spurs (5-0), Sixers (4-0), and Bulls (4-0) also haven’t lost a game.

Incredibly, while the Spurs have been playing in the NBA for a half-century and have won five titles during that time, this is the first year the team has ever gotten off to a 5-0 start. As Michael C. Wright of ESPN details, Victor Wembanyama has been leading the way by playing at an MVP level. After piling up 26 points, 18 rebounds, and five blocked shots on Thursday vs. Miami, Wembanyama leads the league in rebounds (14.6) and blocks (4.8) per game while also averaging 30.2 points per night.

“It feels great,” Wembanyama said of the Spurs’ five consecutive wins, per Wright. “It’s not random. We didn’t get those five wins randomly. We worked for it. We started this season strong, and we need to keep that streak going for as long as possible.”

As impressive as the Spurs’ hot start has been on the heels of a 34-win performance in 2024/25, it’s not the most surprising season-opening run. That honor belongs to either the Sixers, who went 24-58 last season and still haven’t had star forward Paul George in their lineup, or the Bulls, a perennial play-in team who had an over/under of 32.5 wins prior to the season.

Besides not having George available yet, the Sixers have had star center Joel Embiid on a minutes restriction — he has played in just three of the team’s four games and has logged 21.0 minutes per night. Philadelphia’s success has been largely driven by a trio of guards, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, and Quentin Grimes, who have combined to average a remarkable 77.5 points per night, led by 37.5(!) from Maxey.

While the 76ers’ ability to make a deep playoff run in the spring will largely come down to what Embiid and George can give them, the fact that they’re thriving in the early going without major contributions from either of those two veteran stars is an extremely encouraging sign.

As for the Bulls, they opened the season with wins over three far trendier Eastern Conference playoff picks – the Pistons, Magic, and Hawks – before beating old friends Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan on Wednesday in a victory over the Kings. As Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune (subscription required) writes, the Bulls – without top scorer Coby White – are succeeding as a result of a balanced offensive attack, with at least six players scoring in double figures in all four of their victories and no one averaging more than 20 points per game.

Whether their strong start will continue is up for debate, but Josh Giddey seems to be carrying his momentum from last year’s strong second half over to 2025/26, while Matas Buzelis is taking a step forward in his second NBA season and veteran center Nikola Vucevic continues to be a reliable source of offense. Role players like Tre Jones (.581/.625/.750), Ayo Dosunmu (.524/.500/.857), and Patrick Williams (.542/.500/.571) have all be on fire to open the season too.

We want to know what you think of those four undefeated teams. While there’s probably not much to say about the Thunder, what do you make of the Spurs’, Sixers’, and Bulls’ hot starts? Will they come back to earth sooner rather than later, or have you seen enough so far to feel confident about those teams’ chances to exceed their preseason expectations? Which team will be the last to lose a game this season?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Injury Notes: Luka, Giannis, Young, Holmgren, Beal, Sixers

October 30th, 2025 at 10:03pm CST by Rory Maher

After missing the past three games with finger and leg injuries, Lakers superstar Luka Doncic has been listed as questionable for Friday’s matchup at Memphis, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group relays.

It has been five days since the Lakers stated that the Slovenian guard would be reevaluated in about a week, though Price notes the actual left finger sprain occurred a week ago vs. Minnesota. Head coach JJ Redick said ahead of Wednesday’s win that the swelling in Doncic’s finger had subsided somewhat.

Free agent addition Marcus Smart, who has missed the past two games with a quadriceps contusion, is also questionable for Friday’s contest, Price adds.

Here are some more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

Superstar Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was a surprise scratch on Thursday against Golden State after being listed as probable in the lead-up to the game, notes Jamal Collier of ESPN. Despite being down their best player, the Bucks defeated the Warriors behind a career night from guard Ryan Rollins, who finished with 32 points (on 13-of-21 shooting), eight assists and five rebounds, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. As ESPN’s Anthony Slater notes (via Twitter), it was a revenge game of sorts for Rollins, who was drafted by and later traded by Golden State. The former second-round pick had a big game on Tuesday as well, recording 25 points (on 8-of-11 shooting), four assists and four steals in 26 minutes.
Star point guard Trae Young will be sidelined for Friday’s game in Indiana due to a right knee sprain, the Hawks announced (via Twitter). Young was reportedly scheduled to undergo an MRI today after he exited Wednesday’s game with the injury, which occurred late in the first quarter when a teammate was pushed and fell into his knee (Twitter video link).
Thunder big man Chet Holmgren was off to an excellent start this season before lower back soreness sidelined him for both Tuesday’s win vs. Sacramento and Thursday’s victory over Washington. Head coach Mark Daigneault said there are no long-term concerns with Holmgren’s back issue, per Jeff Patterson and Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman (subscriber link). “He’s where he should be,” Daigneault said before Thursday’s game. “We’re being conservative with him. If he was, obviously, perfect he would play tonight. But we’ll go through the process that we always go through.”
After missing the past two games with a sore back, Clippers guard Bradley Beal will be active for Friday’s contest vs. New Orleans, tweets Law Murray of The Athletic. Beal opened the season on a minutes restriction due to offseason knee surgery.
Although Jared McCain (thumb surgery) and Paul George (knee surgery) participated in the Sixers‘ practice on Thursday, both players will remain sidelined for Friday’s matchup against Boston, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link). In case you missed it, the 76ers picked up McCain’s third-year option on Thursday.

Injury Notes: Robinson, Joe, Garland, Collier, Barlow

October 30th, 2025 at 3:18pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson went through a full practice on Thursday and head coach Mike Brown says he’ll be a game-time decision for Friday’s contest in Chicago, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter links).

Robinson has been held out of the first four games of the regular season with what New York has deemed left ankle injury management. There has been no indication from the Knicks that the 27-year-old big man has suffered a new injury or setback.

Robinson didn’t make his 2024/25 debut until February 28 while recovering from offseason ankle surgery and only played in 17 regular season contests down the stretch. He also appeared in 18 playoff games for New York last spring.

We have more injury updates from around the NBA:

Thunder wing Isaiah Joe will be available to make his season debut on Thursday vs. Washington, tweets Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. After averaging a career-high 21.7 minutes per game in 74 outings for Oklahoma City last season, Joe has been inactive to open the 2025/26 campaign due to a left knee contusion.
Coming off toe surgery, Cavaliers guard Darius Garland isn’t facing any restrictions in practices and has been “scrimmaging and everything,” a source tells Spencer Davies of ClutchPoints. The team is being cautious with his return and won’t bring him back too early, but Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints recently reported that a return during the first half of November is very much in play for the two-time All-Star.
Second-year Jazz point guard Isaiah Collier has been cleared for full on-court work, the team announced today (via Twitter), adding that he’ll be assigned to the G League on Friday as he ramps up his conditioning ahead of his season debut. Collier has been sidelined while recovering from a right hamstring strain.
After starting the first two games of the season, Sixers forward Dominick Barlow has missed the past two and will remain out for at least two more due to his right elbow laceration, per the club (Twitter link via Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports). That means Barlow, who will be reevaluated early next week, won’t play against Boston on Friday or Brooklyn on Sunday.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

Sixers Exercise Jared McCain’s 2026/27 Option

October 30th, 2025 at 12:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have exercised the third-year option on Jared McCain‘s rookie scale contract, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

The move guarantees McCain’s $4,422,600 salary for the 2026/27 season. The team’s next decision on the guard’s contract will occur next fall, at which point his ’27/28 option worth roughly $6.84MM would need to be either picked up or turned down.

The No. 16 pick in the 2024 draft, McCain looked like one of the standouts of last year’s rookie class during the first two months of the 2024/25 season. He averaged 15.3 points, 2.6 assists, and 2.4 rebounds in 25.7 minutes per game on .460/.383/.875 shooting in 23 contests prior to suffering a season-ending injury — a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee, which required surgery — in December.

Although he has since recovered from that knee injury, McCain has yet to make his ’25/26 debut after undergoing thumb surgery a month ago. Once he’s ready to return, the 21-year-old will join an increasingly loaded Philadelphia backcourt that has been headed up by Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe on the team’s four-game winning streak to open the season.

The deadline for teams to exercise rookie scale team options is Friday. As our tracker shows, McCain’s was the only option the 76ers had to make a decision on.

Atlantic Notes: Poeltl, Raptors, Celtics, Minott, Sixers

October 30th, 2025 at 9:13am CST by Luke Adams

Raptors center Jakob Poeltl was inactive on Wednesday vs. Houston and is considered day-to-day with back tightness, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. While Wednesday’s contest was the first one Poeltl has missed this season, the injury has impacted his performance in the early going — he averaged just 6.5 points per night in his first four outings, and the Raptors were outscored during his time on the court in each of those games.

“It’s definitely affected him quite a bit,” head coach Darko Rajakovic said (Twitter link via Lewenberg). “He was not himself in those games. He was not moving the way we know that he can move and, definitely, his performance was not where we know Jak can be.”

Rajakovic hopes that Poeltl will benefit from a little rest and won’t have to manage the issue long-term. However, even when their starting center is available, the Raptors are short on size, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca, who notes that the issue was exacerbated against a big Rockets team with 6’8″ rookie Collin Murray-Boyles starting at center.

Toronto was out-rebounded on Wednesday by an astounding 53-22 margin in the 18-point loss, with Houston grabbing nearly as many offensive rebounds (17) as the Raptors did on the defensive end (18).

“I thought our guys were fighting, they were trying as much as they could,” Rajakovic said. “They just manhandled us inside the paint, and we did not have an answer for the rebounding.”

We have more from around the Atlantic:

The Celtics, who opened the year with their longest regular season losing streak since March 2023 (three games), are preaching patience as their newcomers get comfortable and new roles are established, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (subscription required). “We’ve got some guys who the information is comprehending, they’re learning,” Jaylen Brown said earlier this week. “They’re becoming better basketball players. I’m here to help our guys learn in that process as I’m trying to lead as well. It’s gonna take some time. We lost four All-Stars last season, we lost some big-time players. To replace those guys don’t happen overnight and it doesn’t happen in a week either.”
After getting their first win of the season on Monday, the Celtics made it two in a row with a decisive 20-point victory over Cleveland on Wednesday. Offseason free agent addition Josh Minott started both games and made a significant impact, averaging a double-double (13.0 PPG, 11.5 RPG) while registering an outrageous net rating of +44.4 in 61 total minutes. Minott, who didn’t play much during three years in Minnesota, called it a “blessing” to be in Boston, per Jay King of The Athletic. “They’re not really asking for much,” Minott said of the Celtics’ coaches. “Just do my best to defend the other team’s best player, rebound, defend and space the floor on offense. And truthfully, after that, they see everything as a plus. I’m just trying to hone in on what they expect out of me and just help my team to continue to look the best they can.”
In his latest mailbag for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Keith Pompey discusses a handful of Sixers-related topics, including Joel Embiid‘s minutes restriction and what the rotation might look like when Paul George and Jared McCain are healthy. In Pompey’s view, if the roster were fully healthy, the 76ers would start either Dominick Barlow or Kelly Oubre Jr. alongside George, Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and VJ Edgecombe, with McCain, Quentin Grimes, Trendon Watford, and either Adem Bona or Andre Drummond among the first players off the bench.

Atlantic Notes: Nets, Powell, Wolf, Oubre, Watford, Robinson

October 28th, 2025 at 12:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The members of the Nets‘ organization who are prioritizing a “good pick” in the 2026 draft likely aren’t overly upset about the team’s 0-4 start, but head coach Jordi Fernandez wasn’t pleased with the compete level he saw from his club in a blowout loss to Houston on Monday, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post.

“I need consistency and urgency. And that’s got to be like something that we cannot decide if we’re doing it or not,” Fernandez said. “It’s a matter of who we want to be, right? Giving up 42 (first-quarter points) to start, it’s not great. It’s just unacceptable to take an NBA game for granted. And our guys are trying. They just don’t know how much harder and focused they can do things. And I believe they’ll keep taking those steps. A lot of it is just lack of experience.”

Only two of the Nets’ five 2025 first-round picks were active in Houston, with Egor Demin (plantar fascia) ruled out and Drake Powell and Danny Wolf assigned to the G League. Still, seven of the 12 players who saw the floor for Brooklyn are under 25 years old, and three others are just 26.

As Lewis writes, the challenge for the Nets as an organization this season will be to lose enough games to get that high draft pick coveted by management and ownership while not establishing the sort of hard-to-break habits that will negatively impact the team’s culture going forward.

“A lot of these teams that try to bottom out by tanking like Brooklyn is doing, they think there’s no consequences,” one player agent told Lewis. “You risk eroding the environment you’re trying to create.”

We have more from around the Atlantic:

Powell played just two minutes in the Nets‘ opener, while Wolf has yet to make his regular season debut. Both players have been dealing with ankle injuries, but Fernandez suggested on Monday that they’ll likely get a look in the NBA after they spend some time with Long Island in the G League and get healthy. “We have a plan for everybody. Sometimes, those plans have to be made on the go because we didn’t know they’d sprain their ankles,” Fernandez said, per Lewis. “They did. Now, they’re ready to practice. Now, they can get real practices. That’s very good that they can do that, so when we need them, they’re ready to go. I’m very happy with the resources we have, how we use them, and it’s good that they have this practice and then they can help us soon.”
While the backcourt duo of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe has deservedly gotten much of the credit for the Sixers‘ hot start head coach Nick Nurse was effusive in his praise for the team’s third-leading scorer, Kelly Oubre Jr., after the forward racked up 25 points and 10 rebounds in Monday’s win over Orlando. As Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports tweets, Nurse raved about Oubre’s defensive versatility and effort on the boards. “Kelly was awesome,” Nurse said. “That was one of Kelly’s best games, if not his best game, as a Sixer. He was awesome from the beginning.” The 29-year-old is on an expiring $8.38MM contract and was considered a possible trade candidate during the offseason.
Forward Trendon Watford will make his Sixers debut on Tuesday in Washington, reports Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link). Watford, who signed with Philadelphia as a free agent over the summer, has been sidelined since training camp due to a right hamstring injury.
The Knicks have ruled out center Mitchell Robinson for a fourth straight game to open the season due to left ankle injury maintenance, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Robinson has yet to play this season despite no indication from the team that he suffered a new injury or a setback this month.

Sixers Notes: Undefeated Start, Maxey, Grimes, McCain

October 28th, 2025 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

The Sixers wilted last season under an avalanche of injuries, but there’s reason to believe that may not happen again, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription required). Philadelphia was shorthanded on Monday night as Joel Embiid was rested for left knee injury management and Dominick Barlow missed the game after having a procedure for a laceration on his left elbow. They joined Paul George, Jared McCain and Trendon Watford, who haven’t played yet this season, but the Sixers managed to defeat Orlando to remain one of the league’s four unbeaten teams.

“Last year, I think lineups changed a lot. Guys in and out,” Kelly Oubre Jr. said of 24-58 season. “But this year, I think Tyrese (Maxey) has been hitting it on the head. It’s like no matter who’s out there, we have this constant that we won’t waver from. That goes into our culture and the things that we do on a daily basis. It’s still early. But at the end of the day, man, if we can have the next man step up, or anybody come in there and be an impact to winning, I think that we’ll be better off than we were last year.”

Head coach Nick Nurse was forced to use a makeshift rotation to pull out the win against the Magic. Jabari Walker made his first start of the season and delivered four points, five rebounds and a block in 14 minutes. Veteran guard Eric Gordon and rookie guard Hunter Sallis both saw action for the first time this season.

There’s more from Philadelphia:

The Sixers are getting a historic performance from their young guards, Pompey notes in the same piece. Maxey and VJ Edgecombe have combined for 186 points, which is the highest total for a starting backcourt through three games since the league began tracking starters in 1970/71. Maxey, who had 43 points on Monday and is leading the NBA in scoring at 37 PPG, received MVP chants from the crowd. “I’m just trying to close games out,” he said. “Joel has been on me recently about that, probably since my fourth year, about how I can help close games out and have the ball in my hand and make decisions whether I’m shooting or whether I’m passing.”
Quentin Grimes, who signed his qualifying offer following a summer-long standoff over a new contract, is finding success in a bench role after being the team’s leading scorer late last season, Pompey adds. He contributed 14 points on Monday after scoring 24 against Charlotte on Saturday. “I know I’m going to get starters minutes and everything (despite coming off the bench),” Grimes said. “I’m going to do my thing. I just get the opportunity to go out there and play my game … go out there and help the team win. We got a lot of good guys on the team, a lot of versatility. So it’s all going to play itself out. It’s going to work out for sure.”
McCain is making progress in his recovery from thumb surgery and could be back on the court soon, Pompey states in a separate story. The second-year guard, who’s no longer wearing a splint, put on an impressive shooting display after Monday’s shootaround, according to Pompey. Nurse urged caution, saying McCain still has to go through “a series of days of contact” before being activated. “Inserting him in with the VJ, Tyrese and (Quentin Grimes guard) group is the plan,” Nurse added. “That was sort of the plan going into the season. Again, I think they all can do a variety of things, and give us a chance to have some more depth. Gives us a chance to, again, play some shorter stints so the energy can stay high and all those things. We need him back. We look forward to having him back.”

Joel Embiid Likes Addition Of VJ Edgecombe

October 27th, 2025 at 10:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Sixers rookie VJ Edgecombe has already won over Joel Embiid, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription required). After scoring 34 points on opening night, Edgecombe has found multiple ways to help the team, posting 15 points, six rebounds, eight assists and three steals in Saturday’s win over Charlotte. “You’ve got to keep being aggressive, but also letting the game come to you,” Embiid said. “And that’s what he did tonight. Every night, I said it after the first game, every night — it might be Tyrese (Maxey). It might be me. It might be him. It might be someone else, but you’ve still got to play the right way. Some nights, you’re not going to score. How else are you going to contribute? He’s doing it defensively and sharing the ball.”

Sixers Notes: Embiid, Barlow, Drummond, Edwards

October 26th, 2025 at 6:02pm CST by Eli Cohen

Joel Embiid will miss the Sixers‘ game against the Magic on Monday due to left knee injury management, reports Keith Pompey of the Philly Inquirer (via Twitter). It has been reported that Embiid and the Sixers would be cautious with his health, so the move isn’t unexpected after he played in the first two contests of the season.

Embiid scored 20 points in 20 minutes in the Sixers’ most recent game against the Hornets, following a disappointing season debut against the Celtics. Taking advantage of Charlotte’s lack of big man depth, Embiid added four assists and two steals while scoring nine of the team’s first 18 points, writes Pompey.

Embiid, who is currently on a minutes restriction, is still trying to navigate how to be most effective in a more limited role, Pompey writes.

“Longer stints, you’ll actually be able to let the game come to you,” he said. “But then again, longer stints also mean you might be done by halftime. But I can’t sit for too long… being in shape is one thing, but being in basketball shape is another thing. You need to play, and you need to play a lot.”

We have more from the Sixers:

Dominick Barlow will miss at least the next two games with a laceration to his right elbow that will require a procedure on Monday to address, reports Pompey (via Twitter). Pompey adds that Barlow will be reevaluated later in the week. Barlow was one of the standouts of the Sixers’ preseason, winning the starting power forward job in Paul George‘s absence despite being on a two-way contract. In his season debut against the Celtics, he scored 13 points and added eight rebounds and five assists. He played just under 16 minutes against the Hornets before leaving the game due to the injury.
Andre Drummond was out of head coach Nick Nurse‘s rotation to open the season, but played arguably his best game as a Sixer against the Hornets, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic (subscriber link). Drummond brought down 13 rebounds in 15 minutes and was instrumental in turning the team’s momentum around, according to Jones. “I’m thrilled that he was able to play so well,” Nurse said. “And now, I’m kind of wondering why I didn’t use him earlier. I knew that I would eventually have to use him again, because Joel was down to just a few minutes in the second half. I was trying to find some spark, and he gave it.“
Justin Edwards was hoping to build off a strong rookie season, but struggled to carve out a role for himself during Summer League or preseason, writes Kyle Neubeck for PHLY Sports (Twitter link). After scoring nine points in the second half against the Hornets, Edwards revealed that Drummond has been an important confidant, having helped keep him confident and ready for his opportunity. “For a guy like Justin who’s young… who is used to playing big minutes off the year he had last year, coming back now and being out of the rotation… I have him sit next to me every game,” Drummond said. “I said bro, don’t lose yourself in this. It’s a game of runs; it’s a game that changes often. Just stay ready, continue to work, and when your number is called, you’re going to be ready to go.“

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