NEW YORK — For the first time since Tyrese Maxey saved their season with a series of shots etched into franchise lore, the Sixers returned to Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night to face the New York Knicks team that eliminated them from last season's playoffs. This time, the tenor was much different.
The Sixers entered New York City losers of eight straight games, their longest losing streak in close to a decade, with a pursuit of optimal draft lottery odds appearing more realistic than a push for the Play-In Tournament, let alone the playoff picture. Meanwhile, the Knicks entered the game experiencing a bit of an identity crisis, unable to defend most teams and incapable of hanging with many of the NBA's elite groups. On top of that, All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns was unavailable for New York.
The Sixers looked set to spend the entirety of this game playing from behind, only to fall short at the hands of the Knicks. But with a stellar showing in the second half — led by a remarkable Paul George scoring heater — they chipped away at what was once a 19-point lead until it had been erased. The Sixers held two different leads in the final minutes of the game, but All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson put the Knicks on his back down the stretch to the delight of his audience. The Sixers' effort in the second half of this game was genuinely commendable, but not even that could help them snap their losing streak.
Here is what stood out from the Sixers' ninth loss in a row, a 110-105 defeat at the hands of the Knicks:
Is Kelly Oubre Jr. underrated?
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau called Kelly Oubre Jr. "one of the most underrated players in the league" before this game, and the veteran swingman was the only Sixer who brought any offensive juice early on. While Maxey shot 2-for-10 from the floor in the first quarter — old friend Mikal Bridges did a stellar job of defending him while also pouring in 19 points in those dozen minutes — Oubre played the entire frame and paced the Sixers with 12 points on 5-for-6 shooting. That included a pair of triple, an encouraging sign given three-point shooting has been the only area in which Oubre has notably struggled of late.
K3LLY! pic.twitter.com/WrhUAcRhu4
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) February 27, 2025
By the time the teams had reached intermission, Oubre was up to 19 points, three assists and zero turnovers on 7-for-10 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc. But he continued to be the only Sixer with any offensive rhythm, as Maxey returned to the locker room a 4-for-15 shooter from the field while missing all six of his long-range attempts.
Oubre has somehow become a polarizing figure among certain groups of Sixers fans, which is a bit puzzling. He is what he is as a player; there is no doubt there are flaws. But on a team which has constantly been ridiculed for insufficient focus and energy, Oubre and Guerschon Yabusele are just about the only rotation regulars who have provided reliable effort on a nightly basis. While Oubre is still liable to make a bad decision here and there, many of the bad habits which have dragged down his value during his NBA career have either been eliminated or reduced this season.
Oubre's strong defense across multiple positions on the perimeter, improved rebounding and rim finishing and timely cutting all combine to make him a solid, all-around role player. And as a three-point shooter, Oubre's volume has always been more valuable than his accuracy. But after shooting 31.1 percent from beyond the arc in his first season with the Sixers last year, Oubre was down to 27.6 percent from three-point range this season entering Wednesday. He is attempting four long-range tries per game, and anecdotally the looks he is getting feel very similar to the ones he took last season, when he averaged 4.8 three-point attempts per game.
The fact of the matter is this: no matter how much Oubre improves as a defender, rebounder, finisher and cutter, there is going to be a cap on his ceiling in terms of overall impact if he cannot be a reliable spot-up three-point shooter. A strong bunch of weeks from long range could boost his stock quite a bit heading into what will likely be Oubre's third consecutive try at free agency.
With knee tendinitis in rearview mirror, Quentin Grimes faces former team
Grimes, who spent the first two-plus seasons of his NBA career with the Knicks, said after Wednesday morning's Sixers shootaround that he no longer has games against New York circled on his calendar, as enough time has passed since the Knicks traded him to the Detroit Pistons (as well as two more trades) for him to process things. Plus, he pointed out, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Deuce McBride are the only remaining Knicks he teamed with during his tenure in New York.
Before the game, Thibodeau called Grimes a "great person," a "hard worker" and a "terrific player," while Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said that he has largely been intrigued by what he has seen in Grimes' recent audition as a backup point guard, that he likes the look of a tall ball-handler and that it has understandably been a mixed bag in terms of Grimes' ability to keep the offense organized.
Grimes, who was listed as probable for the game due to an ailing knee — he left the team's blowout loss on Monday night due to what he described a flare-up of tendinitis — was confident he would suit up, and he was correct, eventually being upgraded to available and listed in Nurse's starting five.
Odds and ends
Some more notes from Madison Square Garden:
• Justin Edwards, who missed three games with a sprained left ankle, made his return to action in this one, coming off the bench. Nurse indicated before the game that the rookie wing would have a minutes restriction in the "mid-20s" as he works his way back. Yabusele did not play due to a corneal abrasion in his right eye, but he also has swelling around his left eye. He did not make the trip as the Sixers attempt to avoid exposing him to much light. (What a pair of sentences.)
• The team is not yet prepared to provide updates on Joel Embiid — who remains out with left knee injury management as the Sixers reportedly consider "alternative" methods to treat him, including surgery — or Eric Gordon, who underwent wrist surgery on Wednesday which Nurse said went well. Nurse said it would be safe to expect timelines on both players in a matter of days.
• Nurse went with a nine-man rotation in this one. Maxey, Grimes, Oubre and Paul George started alongside Andre Drummond. Rookie center Adem Bona backed up Drummond, with the remaining reserves being Edwards, Lonnie Walker IV and eventually Ricky Council IV. This arrangement once again left Jared Butler on the outside looking in.
• George's performance prior to halftime was lackluster in the scoring department, but he erupted in the second half. Suddenly, George looked like the nine-time All-Star who the Sixers handed a $211 million contract, putting the team's offense on his back for prolonged stretches with three-level scoring. It was not enough to drag the team to a win, but an encouraging sign nonetheless.
Up next: The Sixers will have a pair of days off before facing Jimmy Butler and the new-look, surging Golden State Warriors at home on Saturday night.
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