19-year-old Bahamian guard VJ Edgecombe made history in his NBA debut by putting up 34 points in a 117-116 win against the Boston Celtics in their season opener on Wednesday.
His score ranks him third on the all-time list of highest individual scores in an NBA debut game. He even broke down LeBron James’ record of 12 points in the first quarter of his debut by going off for 14 points in the first quarter against the Celtics.
Edgecombe grew up in a low-income neighborhood in Bimini, a region in the Bahamas, and did not have a hoop to practice his passion as a child. But that did not stop him from creating his own path and making sure he attained everything missing from his life.
In a recent video with Adidas, the Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard visited his childhood home and recalled early memories. Encountering a milk crate in the backyard, he recalled a story about making basketball hoops out of those crates.
“We just cut it open, cut this part (bottom) open right here, and then get it up. And then my uncle, who lived right here, used to break down my rim every time. He used to break it down,” Edgecombe narrated.
His uncle would wait till the kids got to school and broke down the rim they’d created. But that too did not deter him from trying again and again.
“You know, we went to school, and he used to pull it down. We came back, the rim was on the floor… because we used to be hitting against his room, making noise, but who cares, you know, we were just trying to get better at basketball,” He added.
VJ Edgecombe used a milk crate as a basketball hoop when he grew up in the Bahamas, per @adidasHoops
I’m rooting hard for this kid, man. pic.twitter.com/NjaywdTwkM
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 23, 2025
After being drafted third overall by the 76ers in this year’s draft, he publicly spoke about coming from a modest background. It became so bleak that at one point, his family had to live off a generator due to the limited electricity.
In the 9th grade, his family moved to the United States, and he got a real chance to play with elite players and learn under experienced coaches. Throughout High School, Edgecombe stood out from the rest of his class.
During his time at Long Island Lutheran, he averaged 17.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists, along with 2.3 steals in his senior year. After earning honors such as New York Gatorade Player of the Year, he shot into the national spotlight. Also, he played in prestigious games such as the McDonald’s All-American and the Jordan Brand Classic in 2024.
The ambitious guard then entered Baylor University as a five-star recruit for the 2024-25 season and averaged 15.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists, shooting 43.6% from the field and 34% from the three-point line during his freshman year.
He won the Big 12 Freshman of the Year award, made it to the All-Big 12 Second Team, and the Big 12 All-Freshman Team. From there, he declared for the draft and then went on to become a top prospect in this year’s draft.
After a historical debut, the young shooting guard has given the Philly fanbase something to look forward to. For the past few years, fans have been losing hope due to failure after failure and an inability for Joel Embiid to realize his full potential.
Edgecombe brings a new fire to the team that is loaded with talent and just needs a push to get over the slump and turn around the grim predictions for the season.
