Rookies hitting a will are far from being out of the ordinary in the NBA — it is to be expected. However, with VJ Edgecombe, his recent struggles have become more well-pronounced thanks to the lofty standards he had already subject himself to with his stellar production so far for the Philadelphia 76ers.
After averaging 20.3 points per game on 49.5 percent shooting from the field, which includes a 42.1 percent conversion rate from beyond the arc in his first six games, Edgecombe has mightily struggled as of late. In his last five games, he has tallied an average of just 9.4 markers per outing on a putrid 27.9 percent shooting, including a measly 25 percent from three-point range.
Of course, no matter how good he’s looked to start things off for the 76ers, Edgecombe is still a rookie who is susceptible to these kinds of stretches. However, there is another dominant reason which can be pointed out for his struggles, which is the attendant burnout caused by Nick Nurse over-exerting him to begin the season.
Nick Nurse is to blame for 76ers rookie VJ Edgecombe’s recent struggles
Edgecombe is averaging 37.3 minutes per game through 11 games, which is the second-highest mark in the league behind his fellow teammate in Tyrese Maxey. Among rookies, he is tallying almost five full minutes more than Cooper Flagg, the second-most heavily deployed freshman in the league.
Nurse and the coaching staff have obviously been sapping away everything extractable from Edgecombe on a nightly basis. While that design was perhaps sensible given his piping hot start to the season, the aftereffects of overplaying him early are starting to kick in.
Naturally, it is his efficiency which has taken the biggest hit. While it is impressive that his confidence has never wavered despite his shooting slump, the reality is that Edgecombe is still human. He is prone to stretches of subpar play under the force of fatigue, which likewise applies to any other player in the league, no matter the caliber.
With Quentin Grimes playing well and Jared McCain having just returned, the 76ers should seriously commit to trimming Edgecombe’s minutes moving forward. It is simply not sustainable to deploy him like an All-Star player in his prime, especially since he is still adjusting to the wear-and-tear of such a grueling regular season.
VJ Edgecombe is too good not to get out of his slump sooner than later, but the 76ers also have to help him out in that regard. And as counterintuitive as it may sound, the best way they can do that is to give him less.