The Philadelphia 76ers began the 2024-25 season with a present and hopeful future centered around Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George. One nightmare season later, the Sixers very well might start the 2025-26 season with their present and future centered around Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain, a top-six pick this offseason — if they’re lucky, and… Justin Edwards.
The road for Justin Edwards to get to the point where he can be considered a legitimate part of the Sixers’ future was certainly not an easy one for the hometown kid. He was a five-star recruit out of high school heading to Kentucky. At one point, he was even considered by some to be the top overall recruit in the class and was a shoo-in to be a lottery pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.
It did not go as anticipated.
Edwards’ freshman year at Kentucky was a major disappointment, to say the least, especially for a recruit of his caliber’s standards. He averaged 8.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists while shooting only 48.6 percent from the field and 36.7% from distance. Being one of the nation’s older freshmen, having been 20 years old when the draft rolled around, it was the perfect storm for an epic draft stock slide that saw him fall out of the draft altogether.
Fast forward eight months and Justin Edwards has outgrown his role with the G League affiliate Delaware Blue Coats and has provided much-needed youth and energy to a Sixers team that has lacked just that all season. His unique blend of size and speed gives the Sixers a downhill threat on offense that often plays within control and does not force too many opportunities. Basically, he does a lot of what Ricky Council IV can do, but he is infinitely more disciplined and shoots better. He has the bones of a good and versatile NBA basketball player.
Edwards profiles to be the type of player that any team should want and could use. His best abilities on offense are accentuated off the ball; he is not hesitant to shoot, which is especially good to see at a young age; he has all the tools to wreak havoc in transition, and he puts in the effort on defense. No matter how poor his lone year at college went, some team should have taken a flier on his traits alone. Luckily, he fell into the Sixers’ lap after the draft concluded.
Justin Edwards has had more early success in the NBA as a rookie than all three of his Kentucky teammates who were taken in the draft. Most notably, Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham were both lottery picks- Sheppard being drafted third overall. Edwards’ numbers are better than both of theirs, and it is not as if the others had not been given their respective opportunities. Edwards is just that solid and sound of a basketball player and just needed a little bit longer to show it.
The ‘Process Era’ is going up in flames, but somehow, the team still has three tangible building blocks for the next iteration of Sixers basketball. Hopefully, they can make it four after this year’s draft. But for now, if you squint a little, you can see the makings of a successful core a few years down the line.
