Nick Nurse lays out his wants for Sixers' VJ Edgecombe in 2nd season
· Yahoo Sports
LAS VEGAS -- The Philadelphia 76ers were able to enjoy one helluva rookie season by VJ Edgecombe. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft averaged 16.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists while shooting 43.8% from the floor and 35.4% from deep. He showed off a ton of poise all season and showed up in big moments for this group time and time again.
With that said, Edgecombe, obviously, has more to improve on. There needs to be more as he moves forward in his career and wanting to help the Sixers win a championship. If one asks coach Nick Nurse, there are some things he wants him to work on.
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"I mean, offensively, I'll start there first, I think just, again, similar thoughts you guys hear from me a lot," Nurse pondered. "I think the easier and deeper he can shoot the 3 is just going to give everybody more space. He's spending a lot of time on that right now. You guys probably watched him when you saw him coming off those screens, and some of those were pretty deep. He was nailing. He's really putting his time in there, which is important."
Edgecombe took 5.6 attempts from 3-point range per game, which is a solid number, but in today's NBA, that number can be even higher. Nurse wants him to take those open 3s and knock them down with confidence--as he has in FIBA for The Bahamas. If he adds that to his game, he becomes even tougher to guard.
Throw in the 3-point shot with his ability to get downhill, and one has to believe that's what Nurse and Co. want to see more of. He needs to get downhill and be that aggressive guard.
"The other offensive thing, which I think he's unbelievable at, but just doesn't doing enough volume is go coast to coast," Nurse continued. "I mean, he gets it. He takes off, and how many times does he end up right at the front of the rim? I'd like to see instead of two of those a game, I'd like to see 10. Or attempts, or at least try, but I just think there's a little bit more pace he could add to his game offensively."
On the other end of the floor, Nurse wants to see Edgecombe take another step forward. If he can continue to study scouting reports and grow as a young player on defense, then it unlocks another facet of his game.
"Then just the defensive stuff is he's really good," Nurse finished. "He just got to figure out a way to consistently give the effort and continue to improve because he can be a lockdown guy as he grows and he has some stuff to learn. He's still young with guarding certain guys and that kind of stuff. Continue to think like a two-way player."
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Nick Nurse lays out his wants for Sixers' VJ Edgecombe in 2nd season