The Philadelphia 76ers will be entering the offseason with a major opportunity to pursue a clean slate. Nearly half of their roster could very well hit the open market, but they also have some players who could end up being on the trading block. One of those cogs is Justin Edwards, who did not exactly have his best season in 2025-26.
The sophomore wing saw his role drastically decline this season, and his production ended up being quite stale for the most part. Having said that, it would still be in the team’s best interests to keep him in the fold, especially since his contract is cheap and he is still plenty capable of turning in a bounce-back season in the following campaign. Heck, for all intents and purposes, Edwards is already the kind of depth piece this team keeps searching for.
Philly is one of the more inferior squads in the league when it comes to three-point shooting. On all metrics (attempts, makes, and shooting percentage), they rank among the lowest out of all teams. As such, that is the primary area where Edwards’ value shoots up. He is one of the better perimeter threats on the roster, and the 76ers simply cannot afford to jettison him.
The 76ers cannot afford to part ways with Justin Edwards despite his down year
Before catching fire to some degree late in the season, Edwards was simply unplayable. Nick Nurse and the coaching staff did not even bother to accommodate his quest to get out of his lengthy shooting slump, one that traces back to his Summer League stint where he just couldn’t hit anything. The 76ers tried to give him leeway to create his own shot, but that quickly proved to be a moot escapade on their part.
Eventually, Edwards managed to rejoin the rotation near the end of the regular season, even being one of the very few players to get consistent minutes off the bench in the playoffs. That is pretty reflective of the fact that this team has a dearth of three-point shooting, and that status quo remains the same at the moment.
Edwards is making just above $2 million next season and in 2027-28, although his deal includes a team option for the latter. That is obviously not a lot of money, and the 76ers would easily benefit more if they keep Edwards and hope that he puts a governor on his stunted growth in his sophomore season.
The 76ers have already made some painful omissions when it comes to younger players in recent years. Thus, it is incumbent upon them to repose a little bit more trust and confidence on Justin Edwards, who still has a rightful place on this team despite his down year.
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