The Philadelphia 76ers were hella lucky to get a hold of someone like VJ Edgecombe during last year's draft. Teams like them touting talented cores almost never stumble upon prospects as elite as the Baylor standout. However, last season's brutal injury-riddled campaign was the prime impetus for the team getting some luck in the draft.
Edgecombe has looked like one of the best rookies in the league this season, finishing third in the Rookie of the Year award. Most people already have him penciled in as a future franchise player for the 76ers with his loaded potential, but as what can be gleaned from his recent performances, fans have to hold their horses before imploring the front office to start definitively building around him.
Tyrese Maxey is the face of the 76ers right now while Joel Embiid, at his very peak, remains the best player on the team. Still, Edgecombe is the man for Philly in the future. Even right from the get go, he has already shown a lot of star-like qualities, and his skill level is just as, if not more, impressive. Eventually, the franchise will move with him at the crux of things.
Just not yet, at least for now.
The 76ers have to wait for some more time before handing the keys to VJ Edgecombe
Edgecombe was arguably the biggest reason why the 76ers were able to steal Game 2 of their first-round series against Boston. Unfortunately, outside of his splendid showing in that game, he has been absolutely abysmal in the postseason.
In Game 4, where the 76ers saw themselves get manhandled on their home court to the tune of a 32-point beatdown, Edgecombe racked up just six points in 36 minutes, missing seven of his nine field-goal attempts and misfiring on all four of his three-point tries. He was completely unwatchable and unproductive, and the Celtics were more than happy to see him try to initiate the offense.
Edgecombe seems to have hit the rookie wall, but the current narrative is more than that. He is struggling to impact the game outside of scoring right now, and the truth of the matter is that he is trying to force the traffic too much to the detriment of the team.
For a win-now franchise like the 76ers, that operates as a "slow down" reminder. People might have become too antsy about, say, moving on from Embiid and focusing on Maxey and Edgecombe, but the rookie is still way too young to expect to be a consistent force who can will them to wins in playoff settings.
Philadelphia has to let VJ Edgecombe simmer first before demanding the world out of him and acting accordingly when it comes to building the roster. For now, he is not yet someone whom they can (or should) revolve their operations around, and at this point in time, that is completely okay.
Add us as a preferred source on Google