Sixers Add 2 NBC Holiday Games on Jan. 18 and Feb. 15

Q: Can Philadelphia's newly revamped superteam finally exact revenge on MLK Day after Atlanta’s shocking season sweep last year?

Yes — Philadelphia should have a far better chance to flip that matchup on MLK Day, but “revenge” is still not guaranteed. The biggest reason is talent. The Sixers are no longer the same team Atlanta swept 4-0 last season. Philadelphia’s offseason overhaul has reportedly added LeBron James and Jaylen Brown alongside Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, giving the club one of the league’s most loaded cores and a roster built for exactly these national showcase games. That star power is also why the Sixers are expected to hit the national-TV maximum of 34 games. Still, the Hawks are not a soft landing spot. They already proved last season they can bother Philadelphia stylistically, and the MLK Day game is in Atlanta, where the Hawks will have the edge in environment and familiarity. A one-game holiday showcase is also different from a paper talent comparison: Embiid’s health, LeBron’s age, lineup chemistry, and how quickly Brown fits into the system all matter. What makes the game especially compelling is that it is an early measuring stick for whether this rebuilt Sixers group is merely famous or actually dominant. If Embiid is healthy and the new core is functioning by mid-January, Philadelphia should enter as the more dangerous team and a legitimate favorite to end the Hawks’ recent run in the matchup. If the roster is still searching for rhythm, Atlanta has already shown it can punish that.

Q: Who will emerge victorious when VJ Edgecombe faces off against reigning Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg on Presidents' Day?

It is too early to say who will win that Presidents’ Day matchup, but Cooper Flagg enters as the safer pick in the individual headline duel. The known facts favor Flagg on résumé. He is the reigning Rookie of the Year after beating out VJ Edgecombe in last season’s voting, and both players were also named to the All-Rookie First Team. That makes the Feb. 15 game in Dallas one of the more compelling young-star showcases on Philadelphia’s schedule. Edgecombe, though, gives Philadelphia a real chance to flip the script. His rookie season was strong enough to make him a foundational piece for the Sixers, and reporting around the team describes him as a high-impact starter on both ends. He averaged 16 points and 5.6 rebounds and earned praise for his defense and rapid development. Some team coverage also points to a 38-point career night and a much larger offensive role at times. Team context may matter as much as the rookie rivalry. The game is in Dallas, which helps the Mavericks, but recent history slightly favors Philadelphia in the overall matchup; the Sixers have reportedly gone 7-3 against Dallas in their last 10 meetings and have not lost to the Mavericks since February 2024. So if the question is who has the edge in the star-versus-star narrative, Flagg is the proven front-runner right now. If the question is who wins the game, that will likely depend more on roster health and surrounding stars than on Flagg versus Edgecombe alone.

3 articles · Updated · Liberty Ballers · Aug 12

Two more nationally televised Philadelphia 76ers games were added Wednesday, with holiday road matchups set for Jan. 18 at Atlanta and Feb. 15 at Dallas.
Both games will tip at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, giving the Sixers added standalone exposure on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents’ Day.
That expands an already prominent national slate that also includes opening night, Christmas Day and a nationally televised home opener against Cleveland.
The added windows underscore how heavily the Sixers are being featured on the NBA schedule this season, with multiple marquee broadcast slots already in place.