Against the Houston Rockets on Monday, March 17, Quentin Grimes scored 46 points for the Sixers, the second time since his arrival in Philadelphia that he scored 40 or more points. It’s rare for a player to acclimate himself to a new environment so quickly. It is so rare, in fact, that by scoring 40-plus points within his first 17 games with the Sixers, Grimes set a franchise record, becoming the quickest to do so
Grimes passed Hall of Fame Wilt Chamberlain, who needed 19 games back in 1965, for the honor.
The 2024-2025 NBA season has been an absolute disaster for the Philadelphia 76ers, and yet, the year has also been filled with a rather large amount of smaller victories. While Jared McCain eventually suffered a season-ending injury, his play was an immensely positive surprise, as was the play of Guerschon Yabusele and rookies Justin Edwards and Adem Bona. Perhaps no surprise has been more welcome, however, than the play of Quentin Grimes since his arrival in Philadelphia.
Having acquired Grimes for merely an injured Caleb Martin and eventually a second-round pick — although Philadelphia also received a second-rounder in the idea, this is one move that has very quickly come to haunt the Dallas Mavericks organization.
In his 17 games with the Sixers, Grimes has averaged 21.4 points per game. During his last five games, Grimes has averaged an impressive. 32.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. This is not some Evan Turner-esque putting up points on a bad team; Grimes’ contributions have been legitimate, as reflected by his efficiency. He has shot 52.3% from the field and 42.9 from beyond the arc, making himself indispensable to this Sixers team, if only their objective were to still compete.
Still, if Philadelphia is able to retain Grimes and he shows anything similar to what he has already displayed, the Sixers will happily take it, even if it means a few more near-wins.
For now, the Sixers’ biggest concern regarding this issue is that Grimes may be pricing himself out of their range. While Philadelphia holds the final say on Grimes’ free agent destination, thanks to his status as a restricted free agent, there remains the possibility that a team could sweep in and simply offer more than the Sixers are willing to pay under the new CBA.
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