The Philadelphia 76ers are coming off a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who predictably had their way with the injury-riddled Sixers in their last matchup. Now they’ll have a prime opportunity to bounce back against a team tumbling toward the bottom of the standings — the Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls have had an #OnBrand season, meaning they’re hovering around the bottom of the Eastern Conference at 12th. Compared to past years, though, that’s actually lower than their usual. There’s a reason for that: the Bulls have seemingly ripped the tanking bandaid off after nearly a decade and appear to be genuinely embracing a real rebuild.
For the first time in a while, the Bulls have something of a foundation to build on. After some tense negotiations, they locked up Josh Giddey to a team-friendly contract at $100M over four years. Giddey likely would’ve been in All-Star conversations earlier in the year if the Bulls were more competitive, but alas. Still, he’s averaged 17.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 9.0 assists on 45.5 percent shooting and 37.5 percent from three. He’s given the Sixers fits in the past, and that’ll likely be an area to watch once again.
Outside of Giddey is Matas Buzelis, a rangy forward and product of the now-defunct G League Ignite. The verdict is still out on Buzelis, but there’s plenty of reason to be excited about him if you’re a Bulls fan. He’s having a solid sophomore year, averaging 16.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks while shooting 46.6 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from three. Buzelis dropped a career-high 41 points not too long ago. We’ll see what he does or doesn’t become, but he and Giddey look like major pieces in whatever the Bulls are trying to build.
Look down the rest of the roster and it’ll explain why the Bulls are where they are. The backend is largely the product of what’s left from their unusually busy trade deadline shenanigans. There’s no shortage of guards here, with Anfernee Simons, Collin Sexton and Jaden Ivey all being newer additions on expiring deals. Tre Jones, a serviceable NBA guard, is also still around along with Rob Dillingham, who still has two years left on his rookie deal after this season.
Beyond that is a mix of forwards and bigs, with Zach Collins, Patrick Williams, Noa Essengue, and our old friend Guerschon Yabusele rounding out the rest of the roster. A brief fun fact: Yabu actually opted out of his player option for next season — worth approximately $5M — to help facilitate the trade from New York to Chicago, which is a pretty rare thing to see play out in the NBA.
The Sixers, on the other hand, are on the cupse of turning things around (I feel like I’ve said that way too many times this season). Paul George’s 25-game suspension is over, and barring any weirdness, he should be good to go moving forward. The Sixers have desperately needed shooting, and PG should be able to help with that quite a bit.
Along with George, the Sixers could be getting additional support in the form of Joel Embiid, who may return after missing 13 games with an oblique strain. This means VJ Edgecombe should be getting some serious offensive support with both of them back in the fold.
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There wasn’t much to take away from the OKC-Sixers game, apart from Edgecombe — who put up another 35-point game against the best defense in the league. If there’s any silver lining to injuries taking the team hostage, it’s the increased usage for the Sixers’ rookie, who has made the most of his new opportunities. Over the past three games, Edgecombe has averaged 31.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.3 steals on 52 percent shooting and 42.3 percent from three. He’s looked nothing like a 20-year-old guard whatsoever, and the Sixers have to keep him rolling even with some big names returning.
The official injury report has no shortage of names. For the Sixers, Embiid is questionable as mentioned, along with Quentin Grimes who missed their last game with an illness. Two-way player Tyrese Martin is doubtful with a G League assignment, while Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre remain out. For Chicago, Yabusele, Isaac Okoro and Simons are all doubtful, with Collins, Essengue and Ivey remaining out.
The Sixers are somehow within striking range of a top-6 seed, despite the mounds of injuries and losses piling up over the last 20 or so games. This is a must-win in the sense that they need to capitalize on these opportunities now, to make sure they aren’t stuck in the play-in — where they’d have to win just to reach the postseason. The Bulls, despite a win against the Rockets a few nights ago, truly aren’t trying to win this game. Let’s see if the Sixers can bounce back with a victory and boost their chances of locking up a top-6 seed.
When: Wednesday, March 25 2026, 7 p.m.
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers
