The Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2024-’25 NBA season with aspirations of making a deep run in the NBA playoffs, led by Joel Embiid and Paul George. Instead, Philadelphia finished with the fifth-worst record in basketball and raised questions about the future of its star players.
Embiid and George were both massive disappointments this season. George, who signed a $212 million contract in July, averaged just 16.2 points per game and recorded the lowest Win Shares per 48 Minutes (.036) in his 15-year career as a starter.
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Meanwhile, Embiid only played in 19 games and his scoring average dipped by 10 points compared to his averages over the last two seasons. The 31-year-old center’s recurring knee issues recently required an arthroscopic knee surgery, raising serious doubts about his long-term durability.
Philadelphia even became sellers at the NBA trade deadline and finished the regular season with the franchise’s fewest win total (24) since the 10-win season in 2015-’16. Now, coming off the most disappointing season in franchise history, decisions have already been made before the offseason begins.
- Philadelphia 76ers payroll (2025-’26): $174.403 million
Speaking to reporters, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey announced on Sunday that George, Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and coach Nick Nurse will ‘100 percent’ be back next season.
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Philadelphia hired Nurse in 2023 with the expectation that he would get the team over the hump in the NBA Playoffs, providing an edge to push them past the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Instead, the 76ers suffered a first-round exit last year and then saw their win total nearly cut in half this season.
The decisions regarding the 76ers roster are less surprising, especially given the lack of options they have. Embiid’s knee surgery and long-term durability concerns have decimated his trade value. Meanwhile, George’s on-court decline now seemingly gives him one of the worst NBA contracts right now.
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Philadelphia’s only hope is that it wins the NBA Draft lottery, potentially landing a top-3 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft to land someone like Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, or Ace Bailey. With the odds not in their favor, the 76ers’ championship window seems closed and their long-term outlook is bleak.