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Philadelphia 76ers Weekly Report: The Loss Streak Continues

Philadelphia 76ers
(Bill Streicher / Imagn Images)

Game 38: Tuesday, Jan. 14th, 2025

Oklahoma City Thunder at Philadelphia 76ers

Final Score: OKC 118 – PHI 102

This may have been a low point in the season. The Sixers, perhaps in a tactical attempt to rest starters for games NOT against one of the two best teams in the league, sat everyone. One could argue none of the fully healthy starting five for the Sixers played in this one. No, Paul George, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Caleb Martin, and obviously Jared McCain. Unsurprisingly, the loss streak grew.

Meanwhile, the Thunder were pretty much at full strength and were on pace for 70 wins. It would have been hard, but not impossible, to win this game at full strength. With this skeleton crew? No chance. Doing it at home is pretty heinous, but I get the tactic from the Sixers. Unsurprisingly, the Thunder had a layup line in the hoop. They shot 73% on twos in the game. They also were killed on the boards by Isaiah Hartenstein. Every good rebounder they’ve played against in this Embiid and Andre Drummond-less stretch has had free reign there.

For the Sixers, Justin Edwards was a bright spot, going 9/16. However, this was most likely a case of an end-of-the-bench guy getting an extra run in a weird situation. Still, he could be someone to watch.

Bill Streicher/Imagn Images

Game 39: Wednesday, Jan. 15th, 2025

New York Knicks at Philadelphia 76ers

Final Score: NYK 125 – PHI 119 (OT)

A back-to-back against a good Knicks team is also a tough draw, but Paul George and Maxey sat to play in this one. They did push them hard, but it’s pretty depressing when pushing them hard is about all you can ask for. The same problems they’ve had all year with no Embiid and Drummond reared their heads again. The defense in general was swiss cheese, the Knicks got whatever they wanted. Josh Hart, an elite rebounder, also went crazy, pulling down 17 total with five offensive.

At least the Sixers were able to keep up in the offense department. Paul George has put together three really good games in a row, scoring 25+ on efficient shooting and chipping in everywhere else, too. If January Paul George is who we see for the rest of the year, there’s time to turn this around. Again, though, George playing well doesn’t seem to translate into wins. His best month by far has been in January (22.7/6.7/4.7 on 46/44/100 splits), yet the Sixers have two wins to show for it. George didn’t even play in one of those. 

This was the best game during this loss streak so far. Which isn’t saying much but it’s also the healthiest game they had—showing that a healthy Sixers team is competitive. They just aren’t ever healthy.

Matt Slocum/AP Photo

Game 40: Saturday, Jan. 18th, 2025

Philadelphia 76ers at Indiana Pacers

Final Score: IND 115 – PHI 102

Another game with no Embiid and George, another depressing loss. The Sixers simply don’t have the firepower or personnel right now, even if the teams they play are fairly mediocre, like the Pacers. What is there to say about this game? Maxey led the team in scoring by taking a lot of shots.  No one else helped much except Kelly Oubre Jr, who was pretty good. The interior defense sucked. A story that’s been told a million times. 

The Sixers are just too thin. The bench got killed in this one, and when you’re playing the 14th and 15th men off the bench, that’ll happen. 

Michael Conroy/AP Photo

Game 41: Sunday, Jan. 19th, 2025

Philadelphia 76ers at Milwaukee Bucks

Final Score: MIL 123 – PHI 109

The Sixers closed the first half of the season by extending their loss streak to six. The injury situation got no better, so playing back-to-back against the Bucks was never going to be easy. With these injuries, it was impossible. The Sixers, as usual, fought hard in the first half before running out of juice in the second. 

Maxey had one of his better games of the season, going for 37 on 50% shooting from the floor. Oubre chipped in a solid contribution. Giannis feasted on the inside, scoring and rebounding. The Sixers’ injury list is truly insane, with eight members who were all projected to get solid minutes at some point this season unable to play. 

The January schedule was no joke, and injuries have made it impossible for the Sixers to even attempt to rise to meet it. The Sixers are 2-8 so far in the month. Embiid has played in just two games. George has missed three. Caleb Martin has missed four, Oubre has missed three, it’s just been a revolving door. 

Bill Streicher/Imagn Images

Weekly Musing: How Bad is the East? 

The funny thing is, though, that the East is so bad this loss streak hasn’t actually affected the Sixers in the standings. They started this loss streak at 11th in the East, two games behind the Chicago Bulls. After five more losses, they are 11th in the East, two games behind the Bulls. They are much closer to the tenth play-in spot than they are from picking 1-6 in the draft, where they need to be, or else they lose their pick. Despite the horror of this week, they are still in a better place to compete for the playoffs then tank. 

We’ll see if that’s the case by the end of January. They have a tough finish, with games against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Denver Nuggets twice, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Sacramento Kings. The only game they may be favored in is against the Bulls, which will be crucial to take, considering the standings. The Bulls schedule is hardly easier, so the winner of that matchup will gain solid ground. It all rests on Embiid, who seems more injured than they’ve been reporting. If he can come back, all of these games are winnable. If not, it may be doomed. 


Patrick Yen is a contributor on Back Sports Page.  He has written for NBC, SB Nation and a few more websites in his journalism career. He has been the Back Sports Page beat writer for the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Patrick, a graduate from the Ohio State University, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but moved to Columbus, Ohio early in his life and has lived there ever since. You can find more of Patrick on Twitter @pyen117.

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