PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers handled business on Wednesday night as they took care of the Chicago Bulls by a score of 157-137. The Sixers welcomed Joel Embiid and Paul George back to the lineup and looked like a contender again as the two stars made big impacts on the floor.
Embiid had 35 points, seven assists, and six rebounds, VJ Edgecombe added 22 points, six rebounds, and six assists, George had 28 points, six rebounds, and four assists, and Justin Edwards added 12 points off the bench while Cam Payne had 15 points. Quentin Grimes had 13, six boards, and five assists, and Dominick Barlow had nine points, five rebounds, five assists, and two blocks.
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Here are the three biggest takeaways following the win:
Embiid doesn’t skip a beat
Mar 25, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) controls the ball against the Chicago Bulls during the second quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
The big fella looked A-OK in his return to the floor. After missing 13 games due to a right oblique strain, the 2023 MVP winner made it look so easy against any defender the Bulls tried to throw at him. He either got himself a good look on the offensive end or he was fouled as he dazzled with an array of moves in the post. He was moving well and set the tone for Philadelphia with his energy and strong offensive play. It wasn’t just his scoring either. He was making plays with his passing and directing traffic in order to get the Sixers organized and allowing his teammates to get going.
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“Obviously, he did start with a great rhythm and kind of made his first whatever shots, but then I was just really happy with the way the ball kept moving,” coach Nick Nurse said after the win. “I thought we as a team, played really good offense there for a long stretch. It was a lot of—when you got doubles, cuts, and kick outs and extra passes and guys making the right decision. I like VJ’s aggressiveness tonight. He got in the paint, made some nice jump shots, but just overall, I just liked how the ball was moving for everybody. I mean, Joel obviously got us going, and again, the spacing is different. You can just kind of see the difference for Barlow out there, cutting and rebound. I think the 3-pointers are there, obviously, with Jo stretching the floor and PG stretching the floor, all that stuff becomes more available.”
Edgecombe’s offensive showing
Mar 25, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Vj Edgecombe (77) controls the ball against Chicago Bulls guard Collin Sexton (2) during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
This rookie continues to impress at a high level. The No. 3 overall pick was able to give the Sixers a big lift with his ability to put the ball on the floor and get to the basket with aggressiveness. The paint touches are such a big aspect of today’s game and Edgecombe was able to give the Sixers that presence and then make the correct decision once Chicago collapsed on him. His 3-point shooting in this one was also fantastic as he took advantage of his opportunities. There wasn’t a lot Edgecombe could do wrong in this one.
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“I’m just really glad he made those tonight,” Nurse stated. “I think he comes off the screen. There’s obviously a lot of gravitational pull towards Joel. He’s got a chance to get to his spot and vault up, and I think there’s been some games where he doesn’t look for that, and like, we got to have him look for that, because he’s very good at it, right? I think it’s got to be part of it. I think that, again, just helps the rhythm of what we’re doing, that we use Jo’s pull for other guys to take open lanes and open shots.”
George back on the floor
Mar 25, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George (8) shoots in front of Chicago Bulls guard Tre Jones (30) during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
It wasn’t a huge offensive start for George, but his mere presence made life easier for everybody on the floor. He is a guy that teams have to pay attention to as they have to game plan for a guy like him on a regular basis. The attention he attracts makes life easier for everybody around him and that was the case in this one. He set the tone on the defensive end of the floor while also being able to create opportunities for others due to his gravity. He then erupted in the second half as he found a rhythm and gave the Sixers a big lift in a number of ways. He was great in this one after knocking off the rust early.
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“I think he just needed to get the feel back a little bit, and then, obviously, we kind of started the half, running a couple plays for him,” Nurse explained. “We ran a couple plays out of time outs. He made all those. He just really got to the spot quickly and rose up, and then he kind of went on a on a one-on-one spree there for a little bit after he of got going, but it was good. I just think we needed to get him some open looks, and kind of everybody knew he was going to shoot them when he came off the screens and things and that probably helped to get going.”
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: 3 biggest takeaways for Sixers following blowout win over Bulls