The Philadelphia 76ers are being hailed as one of the big winners of this 2026 offseason and a genuine title contender, but one of LeBron James‘ former teammates isn’t sold on them. Brendan Haywood believes James isn’t what the 76ers needed and raised concerns about Joel Embiid on his Finding The Seams podcast.
“I don’t really love it,” Haywood said. “When I look at this Philadelphia team, I didn’t think, man, if only they had LeBron James. I looked at what were they missing in the playoffs. Well, they were missing that athletic big that could help them defensively, rebound, do all the things that Embiid doesn’t do.
“Go look at Embiid’s defensive numbers,” Haywood continued. “He was arguably the worst defensive player in the playoffs. His blow-by rate was abysmal. People were hot knife through butter. And so when I look at this team with Embiid and LeBron as the four-five, where’s your rim protection?
“Where’s that guy that’s going to rebound out of his area?” Haywood added. “Where’s that aggressive big that can switch the pick-and-roll and still move with the guard and give you that switchability? You need those dirty work guys. They didn’t need another on-ball guy.”
Embiid was arguably the best two-way center in the NBA at one point, but injuries have led to him no longer being the defender he once was. The 32-year-old especially struggled on that end when the 76ers got swept by the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals last season.
Embiid is still a solid rim protector, but the 76ers do not want to see him out on the perimeter. He simply cannot move the way he once did. James isn’t the defender he once was either, while Tyrese Maxey has never been all that good on that end of the floor. So defense is going to be a bit of an issue.
Haywood isn’t the only one who has raised concerns about James and Embiid. An NBA assistant coach also thinks things could go south.
Now, Haywood does believe the 76ers made a good selection in Labaron Philon Jr. with the No. 22 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, but can’t understand why they signed Anfernee Simons to a two-year, $12.3 million deal. The 46-year-old feels they didn’t need another ball-handler/scorer.
“They needed somebody more upfront to do the things that Embiid doesn’t do right now or can’t do,” Haywood said. “And then they needed somebody else at the four that was like a active stretch big. I just don’t really love the fit for LeBron on this team. And the last thing is simply this. Whenever you got a bunch of high-usage-rate players together, boy, the sacrifice has to be big, and everybody has to know it.
“Go look at the usage rate for what Embiid is when he’s healthy,” Haywood continued. “It’s close to 30%. Jaylen Brown’s last year was over 30%. And part of the reason Jaylen Brown left was because he doesn’t want to be No. 2 in Boston. And part of the reason why LeBron left was because he didn’t like being No. 3 in LA.
“And now we’re all going to come make this work together?” Haywood added. “And let’s not forget Tyrese Maxey averaged 30 last year with a 32% usage rate or something around that area. And then we got a young, hungry VJ Edgecombe. I do not like this. Too many high-usage-rate players together. Not enough defense and hustle and energy and effort in the frontcourt.”
The 76ers did bring in forward Dean Wade on a four-year, $39 million deal to provide defense, energy, and effort in that frontcourt. They have also signed Ariel Hukporti on a one-year, $3.4 million contract to back up Embiid, along with Adem Bona. The 23-year-old Bona is definitely the one to keep an eye on.
As for the point Haywood, who played with James on the Cleveland Cavaliers, made about the high-usage-rate players, that is fair. The 76ers might have the best starting five in the NBA on paper with James, Embiid, Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, and Jaylen Brown, but there is only one basketball. Everyone is going to have to adjust.
Fortunately for the 76ers, Maxey is reportedly happy to sacrifice, and so is Brown. They want to win the championship and are willing to take a step back for the greater good.
This might not be the perfect roster, but the 76ers should be in the mix for the title next season.
