Mar 25, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Vj Edgecombe reacts to a Paul George (not pictured) three pointer against the Chicago Bulls during the fourth quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
PHILADELPHIA -- In Monday's loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder, rookie VJ Edgecombe carried the overmatched and undermanned Sixers by scoring a game-high 35 on 28 shots. It came both out of his desire to shoulder the offensive load, but also out of necessity with scorers Joel Embiid, Tyreese Maxey and Paul George sidelined.
Shots have rarely been scarce for the Baylor product, but a full lineup has -- and when that happens, Edgecombe is there to gladly follow the directions of his coach and get launching.
With Embiid and George back in the lineup Wednesday against the visiting Chicago Bulls, one would think that the shot volume would decrease a little for Edgecombe. Not if his coach had his way.
"I don't want to harness it, really," said Nick Nurse. "I hope he stays more aggressive than not. He finally got up there to where we like him (the shot total against OKC). Maybe there's not that many available for him with these guys out there, but we need him to stay pretty aggressive. I think he's got the ability, he's been given an opportunity to show some of that stuff and he needs to continue to do that."
He had no problem with it in the dominating 157-137 win over the Bulls -- the most points scored by the Sixers in a game since 1970.
While the volume wasn't there like against the Thunder, Edgecombe's efficiency spoke volumes. While Embiid was unstoppable in his return Wednesday after missing 13 games with a strained oblique and George eventually found his rhythm in his first action back after serving a 25-game suspension, Edgecombe did what he did when those two were sidelined.
That is he hit jumpers from afar and from mid-range, he drove hard to the basket. He took it himself when presented and got to the right spots when the floor was spread. In all, he did exactly what the team will need when fully healthy
VJ Edgecombe explains how he avoid the “rookie wall” 🏀🔥
(@CiavoNBA) pic.twitter.com/bwM2yI8PqA
— Philly Sports Network (@PhiladelphiaSN) March 26, 2026
Edgecombe didn't stand in a corner while Embiid (35 points) and George (28) dominated, instead, he picked his spots, he made his own advantages and scored 22 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor, including 4-of-5 from three. He also grabbed six rebounds and dealt six assists in his 30 minutes of a game whose final score -- with a 20-point margin -- was much closer than it was all night.
Embiid set the tone early, showing no ill-effects whatsoever from his injury, as he collected 12 points in the first three and a half minutes of the game. He finished the half with 23 on ten shots.
George, expectedly struggled to find his stroke early on, and made just two of his 10 shots in the first half. Edgecombe, though, still found his, as he collected 14 points on 4-of-5 from the floor, a couple of three pointers and 4-of-5 from the foul line. Instead of suffering from his shots being a bit more limited, the rookie thrived in what the game gave him. And when Embiid and George are on the floor, it gives a lot.
George rebounded from his rough start and hit nine of his last 12 shots in the second half, including 5-of-8 from three. All that did was open the floor even more for Edgecombe, who took full advantage, just as he did all night. And things might even get easier moving forward.
Vj Edgecombe talks about Joel and Paul’s return to the court!#vjedgecombe #76ers #eyesonpodium pic.twitter.com/WbCvHmhW4C
Kelly Oubre, Jr., who is averaging close to 15 points a game, appears very close to returning from his left elbow ligament injury and Maxey shouldn't be far behind recovering from tendon damage in his right pinky. Surely shots will be a little harder to come by for Edgecombe when they return, but Nurse would certainly like to see a pretty good balance, which means he and his team are finding the mismatches all over the court.
"I don't think it's equal but I think what I would like to say is can we get enough guys out there that we can find our best matchups down the floor," said Nurse. "Sometimes it's [Joel], sometimes it's PG, sometimes it will be VJ. And then we can go to that. You wouldn't put him (Edgecombe) in as the first option, but in that particular circumstance, whatever the matchup is, he becomes one of your best options. I think that's important."
It's all part of it, learning each other all over again when the five starters get back together. Only four times this season has Embiid, George, Oubre, Maxey and Edgecombe started together. It will be coming again soon with very little time in the regular season to gain familiarity with each other as there are just nine games left in the season.
"I think it's a thing. it's not like it's foreign though," said Nurse of the starters quickness to gel. "This team has played some together and had some nice runs, kind of before all this happened. There's some things that we can take from that and for me it's always about, individually, can we get them into rhythm and can we get them into condition and then try to fit the pieces together.
"I think there's two things. One, is we can get back to trying to figure out what the potential of this team is. I think that's probably the priority. I think the second part is can we make another climb or two, hold our own at least (in the standings), in the process. It's a pretty concise 10-game window, there's some super important head-to-heads in there as well. I think it will give us a chance to do both those things."
During his suspension, George worked hard with Edgecombe on different aspects of his game, both mentally and physically. He watched the rookie have to take over the offensive burden, but also knew how much it would change when everyone returned. Being the key guy to falling back to a later option will only be helpful for Edgecombe, George insisted.
"I've been just trying to help him make the game easier, playing at his pace, slowing down a little bit, using his explosiveness to his advantage," said George. "He's a natural mid-range guy. So, just getting better equipped in that area, just trying to add more tools to a very polished game he has already."
VJ Edgecombe isn’t shying away from opportunity, even with Joel Embiid and Paul George back. 💯💯💯
(@CiavoNBA) pic.twitter.com/1K5jBLjB4K
And that can't disappear when all return. It is why Nurse and George have been pushing him so hard throughout the trials and tribulations of a season. Edgecombe's contributions will be relied upon down the stretch and come playoff time. And he probably will be ready for it with all that he's had to do for the team when shorthanded.
"Obviously we want the team to be fully healthy, but it was an opportunity for other players to get a chance," said Edgecombe. "You never know when your name is going to be called. I'm staying the same. I'm still going to be aggressive. I'm still going to be the same person the whole time. It's going to be a little easier, if you think about it, with Joel being on the floor because he requires so much gravity and so much attention. But I'm just trying to make the right play."
He's gained the confidence in everyone to do that.
