Looking to build on a thrilling upset victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night, the Sixers flew to Chicago for a Saturday night matchup with the Bulls as they concluded a back-to-back. Behind a terrific first half from Tyrese Maxey, the Sixers established an early lead, but he was tasked with doing even more heavy lifting when Paul George was ruled out after logging 13 minutes due to a "left fifth finger injury."
The teams went back and forth in the second half, but it was the Sixers who emerged victorious, sweeping a challenging back-to-back and improving to 17-27.
Here is what stood out from the Sixers' 109-97 victory in The Windy City:
Maxey's stellar run continues
According to the Sixers, with his 20 points in the first half on Saturday, Maxey notched his 14th half with at least 20 points this season, tops in the Eastern Conference:
.@sixers @TyreseMaxey is up to 20 first-half points (7-12 FG, 4-8 3FG). It's his 14th 20-plus point half (1st or 2nd) this season.
That's the most such performances by any Eastern Conference player and second only to @shaiglalex among all players.
h/t @Stathead— Sixers Stats (@SixersStats) January 26, 2025
In recent games, Maxey has seemed far more like the player everyone has come to know. He has scored in bunches and done so efficiently, with a ton of those points coming at the rim and from beyond the arc.
R3se. 👌 pic.twitter.com/pG9fjvDFMC
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) January 26, 2025
Maxey also had an excellent game as a playmaker, and seems to be developing a strong rapport with rookie center Adem Bona.
Maxey 🏀⬆️
Adem 🏀⬇️ pic.twitter.com/pVByeksXlq— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) January 26, 2025
In a perfect world, Bona will eventually serve as Joel Embiid's long-term backup at the five and spend plenty of time screening and rolling in actions with Maxey. Any sort of head start on two-man chemistry between them is a plus.
Keep an eye on these Bulls
For those still holding out hope that the Sixers could turn things around, this game was important: they Sixers entered Saturday night two games back of Chicago for the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference, the final spot in the Play-In Tournament.
The Bulls have been infamous for their lack of in-season activity from a trade perspective, but there have been plenty of rumors surrounding their veteran players ahead of the NBA's Feb. 6 deadline on deals. Zach LaVine has revived his trade value with an excellent season, and the same is true for former Sixers first-round pick Nikola Vucevic. Lonzo Ball could be moved in the final year of his contract.
It is also worth keeping in mind that the Bulls will only keep their 2025 first-round pick if it falls inside the top 10 picks. They could have incentive to bottom out, but so do the Sixers if they elect to try hanging onto their top-six protected first-rounder. It could be a bizarre race for the final Play-In spot.
Can Sixers inch closer to full strength?
Last time the Sixers were in Chicago, they hoped it was the start of a major turnaround. Joel Embiid, making a return from his second lengthy absence of the season, dominated the Bulls. Maxey notched the first triple-double of his NBA career. The Sixers beat the Bulls to improve to 7-15 on the season, but appeared to have finally found full strength. Little did we know that 48 days later, the Sixers would return to Chicago in more dire straits than ever.
Embiid has now missed 11 consecutive games, with an update likely coming in the next day or two on the condition of his left knee. Kyle Lowry missed three weeks of action before returning on Saturday with a minutes restriction. Caleb Martin has been out for a few weeks with a hip sprain, and KJ Martin has been out for over a month with a stress fracture in his foot. Andre Drummond has had two extended absences with a left toe sprain, the second of which continued on Saturday. And the toughest blow of all is that dynamic rookie guard Jared McCain tore his meniscus days later, ending what was becoming stellar season for the 20-year-old.
In a slightly positive update on top of Lowry's return, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said before the game that both Martins are slated to rejoin practices next week, according to the reporting from Chicago of Josh Grieb of Liberty Ballers.
Odds and ends
A few more notes from the action in Chicago:
• With George ruled out, Ricky Council IV received another chance at rotation minutes. Council, whose unreliable decision-making has prevented him from earning Nurse's trust, gave the Sixers reasonable minutes — far better than many of his rotation cameos this season.
• For the first time since Jan. 4, two-way point guard Jeff Dowtin Jr. was inactive for the Sixers. Dowtin can only be active for 23 more NBA games before the Sixers have to convert him to a standard deal in order to keep him active, so they will likely pick and choose spots to hang onto his remaining eligible NBA days.
• Reggie Jackson has almost exclusively been confined to extremely short stints on the floor whenever Nurse has utilized him, but the veteran guard played nearly seven straight minutes in the first half in place of Dowtin, scoring seven points on 3-for-6 shooting during that stretch. He added five more points on four additional shots in the second half.
make that 1️⃣2️⃣ points off the bench for Reggie! pic.twitter.com/QU94aHsjlj
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) January 26, 2025
For better or worse, this is the player Jackson had long been before joining the Sixers — a high-volume shot-taker.
• Kelly Oubre Jr. continues to give the Sixers excellent minutes, particularly as he becomes a force on the glass. Oubre's constant energy is a godsend for this team, and he had a particularly terrific stretch of play to open the fourth quarter. With Maxey resting and George sidelined, Oubre took control, scoring twice in a row before dishing a nifty assist to Yabusele:
Yabu! 🧸 pic.twitter.com/riONpxPrc5
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) January 26, 2025
Oubre has been the best version of himself for much of the last several weeks, and the Sixers need every bit of two-way juice he can provide.
Up next: The Sixers will return home and have two days off before kickstarting yet another back-to-back. They will play host to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday before the Sacramento Kings come to town on Wednesday.
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