One stat for each of the Sixers’ core players that will define their 2025-26 season

The NBA is deep into its offseason and will remain dormant until late September, when media day, training camp, and NBA preseason swing into full view.

That’s when we’ll get another look at the 76ers, one of basketball’s biggest conundrums in the 2024-25 season. And there’s not much more clarity surrounding the team heading into this campaign, as Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Jared McCain recover from knee injuries. Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre, and VJ Edgecombe will be counted on in the interim.

That said, The Inquirer wants to determine one stat that will loom large for each player during the 2025-26 season. We’ll focus on the principal players with experience in Philly whose numbers figure to play a major factor in the team’s performance.

» READ MORE: Five predictions for the Sixers’ 2025-26 season

It’s no surprise that availability will be Embiid’s most crucial ability in the 2025-26 season, as has been the case for much of his career. Embiid appeared to be turning the corner in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, when he eclipsed 60 games in back-to-back seasons and captured the league’s MVP award. But last season was hugely different, when he played in only 19 games.

For the Sixers to be successful, Embiid must appear in at least 50 games. After spending significant time on the sideline — and more time recovering this offseason — Embiid will need to play himself into basketball shape and avoid doing so in the postseason as he has in past seasons. Managing his minutes and keeping him fresh should be the priority.

George was brought to Philly to be much more than a net positive. Yet there weren’t many positives to pull from his injury-plagued 2024-25 season, limiting his ability on both sides of the ball and leaving observers wondering whether George was hurt or over the hill.

George registered a negative overall plus/minus for the first time since he missed almost the entire 2014-15 season following a gruesome leg injury that took nearly a full year to heal. George’s minus-0.4 figure is the third-worst mark of his 15-year career. He is coming off a left knee procedure in the summer, but the Sixers need to have that plus-3 to plus-4 he maintained with the Los Angeles Clippers

Even with Embiid out of the lane for most of the season, Maxey averaged the most three-point attempts of his career last season (9.2 per game). But he shot them at a 33.7% average, the worst clip since his rookie season (30.1%).

Maxey’s rise to stardom coincided with improved shooting, as he knocked down 42.7% and 43.4% of his threes in his second and third seasons. That dipped slightly during his All-Star 2023-24 season but plummeted last year as he faced more attention and struggled through a hand injury. He’ll need to return to form as Embiid and George ease their way into the season.

» READ MORE: Seven games to watch on the Sixers’ 2025-26 schedule

Oubre is at his best when he’s in attack mode and active around the rim. Last year he managed to do that on one of the lowest usage rates of his career (18.9%). If Embiid and George get healthy, that number will drop even lower. And it doesn’t help that Oubre shot only 29.3% from three last season. He’ll be counted on to do more with less and star in his role.

McCain played in only 23 games before a meniscus tear ended his season in January. But when he was rolling, McCain had the green light to pull up from deep. Of course, he’ll need to exercise more discretion if Embiid, George, and Maxey are in the lineup together, but the effort to space the floor for the Sixers’ stars should still be there.

When McCain was rolling, he attempted a large number of three-pointers. He won’t be expected to shoot 13 threes as he did in a 34-point performance against the Cleveland Cavaliers. But that 7.6 three-point attempts average from last December should get the job done.

Edgecombe’s role for the Sixers this season remains a mystery. One area the team’s third overall draft selection will definitely be counted on, though, is defense. Maxey and McCain make a small backcourt, and George took a big step back from his days as a true two-way star.

The Houston Rockets’ Amen Thompson has been lauded as one of the best defenders in the league, and he maintained a defensive win share rate of 3.9 last season. For comparison, McCain was at 0.1 and Maxey sat at 1.0, the same as San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle in his rookie season. The numbers for Thompson and Castle are weighted because of the tough covers they draw every night.