As the Philadelphia 76ers prepare to head out West to participate in the summer league–first in Salt Lake City before heading to Las Vegas–the focus will be on rookies VJ Edgecombe, Johni Broome, and Hunter Sallis. However, the Sixers will be looking to see what they have in their second-year players as well.
While Jared McCain will not play in the summer league as he continues to recover from his meniscus surgery, Justin Edwards and Adem Bona will be on the summer league roster. Edwards, undrafted out of Kentucky, and Bona, a 2024 second rounder out of UCLA, will be the “veterans” on this roster.
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They went through summer league once already along with a full NBA season under their belt. Any questions the youngsters have, coach TJ DiLeo is directing them to Edwards and Bona.
“The leadership,” DiLeo told reporters. “I’m big on them in leadership. Like, bring energy. I’ve talked to all the guys. They got to communicate with each other. Like, if they see someone else, what? Oh, Bona could have done this. Justin could have done—talk to the guys.”
Essentially, Edwards and Bona have to be an extension of the coaching staff. The Sixers will be looking to them to be the leaders of this group and help them prepare for what’s to come when the season tips off again in October. Having gone through the grind of an 82-game season already, the two second-year players will have a lot of responsibility.
“Like, us coaches?” DiLeo finished. “We can give you everything, like drills, like where to be all that, but they’re on the court playing like and if they see something, they got to talk to each other. Open that line of communication and I think that’s what I’ve been on them about a little bit. They’re doing a great job about it.”
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The summer league begins on Saturday with a matchup against the Utah Jazz in the Salt Lake City summer tour.
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Summer Sixers looking to Justin Edwards, Adem Bona for leadership