Back during Summer League in July, shortly after the Philadelphia 76ers had selected guard Labaron Philon Jr. in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, head coach Nick Nurse stated that he expected for the rookie guard to be a fixture in Philadelphia’s rotation during the regular season.
“He’s in the rotation until something changes, and usually it probably will for the better,” Nurse said of Philon at the time. “I just feel like he’s talented enough. I think we like him enough as a staff, organization.”
However, a couple weeks into the season, things clearly haven’t worked out quite the way that Nurse expected when it comes to Philon’s role. So far, the Alabama product has appeared in just five of Philadelphia’s first eight games, and he’s averaged just 6.8 minutes per performance.
In other words, he’s been largely a non-factor for Philly. This showed on Monday, as the rookie saw two measly minutes in a game where many of the Sixers’ starters logged season-lows in that category—sending the clearest message yet that Philon won’t play in the early going unless he absolutely needs to.
Given all of the talent in the Sixers’ backcourt, this isn’t an especially surprising development. On the contrary, it was pretty predictable.
Starters Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe were always going to dominate the backcourt minutes, and free agent addition Anfernee Simons has been incredibly productive for the Sixers off of the bench early in the season. Simons is averaging 11 points per game while shooting 40 percent from long range for the Sixers. He’s singlehandedly tilted a couple of games in Philly’s favor already by providing a spark off of the bench.
Plus, Nurse’s summer comments on Philon’s potential role in the rotation came before the team landed star forward LeBron James in free agency. James is technically a forward, but he could be considered a guard with how often the ball is in his hands and how much offense he creates for the team.
So, with Maxey, Edgecombe, Simons and James handling the vast majority of ball-handling duties for the Sixers, Philon has been the odd man out. The only time that Philon has received any legitimate playing time this season (14 minutes against the Detroit Pistons) came when Edgecombe was sidelined for the game due to an abdominal contusion. Even in a relatively easy game for the Sixers against the lowly Chicago Bulls on Monday night, Philon only saw two minutes of garbage-time action.
That’s probably going to continue being the case for the foreseeable future. Unless one of the guys ahead of him on the depth chart is out, Philon probably isn’t going to get a lot of burn.
And that’s not necessarily an indictment on Philon, who has flashed some potential during his limited on-court opportunities by knocking down a couple three-pointers and grabbing some rebounds. It’s simply the byproduct of being a rookie on a very deep and talented contending team.
Not seeing consistent playing time as a rookie can be frustrating, especially for a player accustomed to having a major role on his teams. But, the best thing for Philon to do is remain ready. At some point, Sixers are going to need him to step up, and responding well to such situations is the fastest way to earn yourself some additional tick.
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