VJ Edgecombe’s defense on Jalen Brunson on Friday was quite possibly the most impressive feat of his NBA career so far.

Brunson attempted 10 field goals against Edgecombe. He made the first one. Then he missed the last nine.

Every Brunson FGA vs. Edgecombe in the Sixers’ win: pic.twitter.com/NUhEhduCIr

— Adam Aaronson’s clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 20, 2025

NEW YORK — The Philadelphia 76ers picked up an impressive 116-107 win over the New York Knicks on Friday thanks in large part to the heroics of rookie guard VJ Edgecombe. The No. 3 overall pick delivered 23 points–18 in the second half–and spearheaded a strong defensive effort.

Edgecombe was matched up with Knicks star Jalen Brunson in the second half and he made life miserable for the New York All-Star. Brunson shot just 1-for-10 and scored six points after halftime on Friday and he had a tough time getting anything going.

One has to be surprised by what Edgecombe was able to do on Friday. He just played in his first game in Madison Square Garden and he delivered a fantastic performance. One may be surprised, but not Edgecombe himself.

“Do I surprise myself? Nah, I don’t, to be honest,” Edgecombe stated. “I don’t surprise myself. I know what I’m capable of doing. That’s it.”

With that being said, Brunson is one of the premier scorers and players in this league. There is so much he can do to free himself up for open looks as he will use a series of pump fakes and different footwork moves to frustrate defenders, but Edgecombe stuck with him. It was a mind-boggling performance.

“He’s a tough player,” Edgecombe said of Brunson. “We all know. Everybody knows he’s super good. I just try to make it difficult. You’re not gonna hold him scoreless, but try to make it difficult. I was just trying my hardest. Not letting him get clean looks or anything like that.”

Another big aspect of New York’s offensive scheme is setting a ton of screens for Brunson to go through and play off of. Instead of backing off and just letting him get whatever he wants, Edgecombe fought over a lot of those screens and giving the Sixers a big help on the defensive end of the floor. Fighting over those screens is something he prides himself on.

“To be honest, it’s kinda like a skill and wanting to do it,” Edgecombe added. “When you see a screen coming, you can be like ‘Ah, switch’, but just wanting to do it. You gotta put in an effort and me knowing who I’m guarding also. An elite player. Somebody who thrives coming off ball screens. He really welcomes ball screens. So, I just try to make it difficult for him.”

With an impressive performance against Brunson and the Knicks in a win, Edgecombe can take pride that his first game in The Garden was a special one.

“That was amazing,” he smiled. “It was everything I expected it to be. The fans, it was great, man. It was a good first game in The Garden, for sure.”

The Sixers will take on the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday on the second night of a back-to-back.