One Bleacher Report NBA writer predicts the 76ers will close out the 2025-26 NBA season with 44 wins.
The Philadelphia 76ers are looking to close out the 2025-26 NBA season on a high note.
The team is currently clinging to the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference following the NBA All-Star break and will look to strengthen its playoff positioning down the stretch.
While they haven't quite established themselves as true Eastern Conference NBA title contenders like the Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, and Boston Celtics, the 76ers are widely expected to be in the playoff mix and finish the season with more than 40 wins.
Bleacher Report NBA writer Grant Hughes has the 76ers finishing the season with a record of 44-38.
"Joel Embiid isn't what he was at his apex, but he's also nothing like the immobile non-factor he was in 19 appearances last year. That's a big deal, and his minor resurgence pairs with the Philadelphia 76ers' stellar guard play to keep them on track for something around the 43 wins we foresaw back in October," Hughes writes.
Hughes adds that the team's success will hinge on continued production from its backcourt, writing, "Minutes-per-game leader Tyrese Maxey will need to continue his seeming indestructibility, and VJ Edgecombe has to keep avoiding that rookie wall, but as long as those two are in the backcourt, the Sixers are a tough matchup every night."
Hughes continued, "It helps that Quentin Grimes is continuing to play a key role after the offseason's messy contract negotiations led him to accept the qualifying offer, and it's also a huge plus that recently converted two-way forward Dominick Barlow is reliable enough to offset Paul George's 25-game suspension."
The 76ers are currently clinging to the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and, at 30-24, are two games above the No. 7 seed, the Orlando Magic.
The 76ers, of course, would have to find 14 more wins on the season to cross this threshold. Fortunately for them, the 76ers have gotten stellar play from their stars in Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, along with several role players on the roster to help make this goal realistic.
Still making the postseason following a year in which the team went 24-58 would be a massive success for the 76ers.
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