Bench scoring remains a huge point of concern for the Philadelphia 76ers. While that is not in any way a new thing for this ball club, it does not change the fact that they are sapped of reliable scoring from their second unit. As such, the coaching staff should seriously consider a lineup shift that can help them strike a better balance between their starting five and their bench.
One might argue that it is way too late for Nick Nurse and his staff to implement a drastic change, the 76ers have sufficient juice to absorb a technical reduction of the firepower on their opening group to bolster the second unit. One change they should seriously consider is moving VJ Edgecombe to the bench for Quentin Grimes, who has had issues staying aggressive enough to be a tenable primary option off the bench.
Edgecombe is averaging more than 16 points a game in his rookie season on league-average shooting splits, which is an impressive feat for a freshman. That being said, he has already shown that he can take over the primary scoring load in spurts, and it might be high time to allow him to do exactly that off the bench, where he will have more freedom to create for himself, and where he can help the team more in theory.
The 76ers should consider moving VJ Edgecombe to the bench to balance out their scoring attack
If there is one lethal thing about the 76ers' starting five, it is the fact that they have four players who can easily get you more than 25 points on any given night. However, with their bench lacking reliable scoring options, there is credence to moving one of them, Edgecombe, to the second unit to better optimize and spread out the scoring talent on the roster.
Currently, Philadelphia has the fifth-lowest scoring bench in the entire association with just 32.3 markers on the average. Depth is not exactly lacking with this bunch, but scoring talent is.
A lot of people will probably be baffled by the prospect of benching Edgecombe when he has started all season long, but with Paul George showing more aggression as a scorer and Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey still being their dominant selves on the offensive end, there is a smaller need for Edgecombe's independent shot-making with those three on the floor.
Off the bench, he will have even more liberty to explore his game. Making that change would also allow the coaching staff to have an easier time staggering the minutes of their nominal big-four.
Sure, this might not be a priority for now, but if the push comes to shove and the bench continues to let them down, the 76ers should not be afraid to make this potentially divisive, yet sensible adjustment.