The Philadelphia 76ers’ 2026 season will be one of the major stories of this upcoming NBA season. With LeBron James’ arrival, the spotlight will shine bright in Pennsylvania. Here is one thing Philly fans should be excited for and one thing fans should be cautious about.
The 76ers’ 2026 NBA season, I predict, will feature a strength that they never had in years past: Experience. In the early Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons days, the team was notoriously known for faltering late in series.
Since 2018, Philadelphia has not made it past the conference finals once. Their losses have included losing to a Boston Celtics team that was missing Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. Next, it was a couple of losses in seven-game series to the Toronto Raptors in 2019, the Atlanta Hawks in 2021, and the Boston Celtics in 2023.
Constantly losing in Game Sevens exemplifies one thing: lack of experience. Now, the 76ers have James and Jaylen Brown on the wings. Both are veterans in the league and have, of course, won at the highest level.
Having someone like James or Brown dictate the tempo late in games will inspire confidence in this team’s late-game execution. Most importantly, both players have done well in the do-or-die games in their careers.
In Brown’s career, he has played in nine Game Sevens and won six of them. James has won six of eight. Their success is no coincidence. They know how to execute late in games, and that prowess will be brought to Philly.
The addition of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will also be a big contributor in certain playoff games. He has won championships with both the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers. Both teams have struggled after his departure, proving that his impact shouldn’t be taken lightly.
A starting five of James, Brown, Maxey, Embiid, and Edgecombe with KCP leading the bench will be a lethal squad.
The 76ers’ 2026 NBA season will have a major health concern once again. Joel Embiid has always been on injury watch his whole career, so this isn’t something new. The addition of a 42-year-old, though, further amplifies this concern.
It doesn’t matter how durable James has been his last three years. Being 42 years old and heading into year 24 is unprecedented. No one has ever played that long in a career, so injury watch is not unreasonable.
James and Embiid must both be healthy down the stretch. Their unique skill sets are what set them apart from the rest of the Eastern Conference, other than the New York Knicks. With LeBron’s ability to play any role and Embiid’s impressive touch as a big man, it makes them hard to defend. A pick-and-roll between the two can prove deadly for opponents.
Without James and Embiid,, Tyrese Maxey, Brown, and VJ Edgecombe(assuming he starts) will do a fine job keeping the team afloat. They, however, all have similar skill sets. They’re all shoot-first, explosive players that can get a bucket any time they need.
Philadelphia must have James and Embiid available to complete their dynamic core.
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The 76ers’ 2026 NBA season will arguably be one of the more fun ones in Philly in years. Since their 2023 loss to the Celtics, they have fallen off the NBA map.
In 2023-2024, Philadelphia lost to the Knicks in the first round in six games. In 2024-2025, they were completely plagued with injuries, winning just 24 games. This most recent year was their most exciting as Embiid and company engineered a shocking 3-1 comeback against Brown and the Celtics in round one.
It feels like the process has been slowly dying. With James’ arrival, there has been a resuscitation. How far will this 76ers team go in the upcoming 2026-2027 season?
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