Sixers Win Behind Andre Drummond’s Hustle and Quentin Grimes’ Late Heroics
Oct 25, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Quentin Grimes (5) celebrates with teammates after his score in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
The Xfinity Mobile Arena has had quite the day. First, the Flyers brought home an overtime win, and a few hours later hosted a thrilling end to the Philadelphia 76ers’ home opener against the Charlotte Hornets.
It was obvious early on that the newly re-tooled Sixers starting lineup came in ready to shoot. The deep shooting got started with Joel Embiid nailing the first three at home this season. The first half looked great for the Sixers with VJ Edgecombe and Tyrese Maxey leading the way, taking advantage of Charlotte’s confusion and weaker coverage. They were passing the ball cleanly, and that led to better shots.
The second half started badly for the Sixers. The rhythm and confidence they played with in the first half seemed to have been left in the locker room at halftime. The Hornets outscored the Sixers 38-25 in the third, making the fourth quarter important.
Andre Drummond really shored up the rebounding in the fourth, and the Sixers clawed back to a 119 tie in with a minute left. The Sixers’ defense held the Hornets and only allowed LaMelo Ball a terribly chosen contested shot, and when it went the other way, Quentin Grimes nailed the deep triple to put the Sixers up for good, leading to the 125-121 win.
The Sixers have stopped hunting threes and started earning them through inside gravity and patient sequencing, which is the core shift behind the cleaner looks you are seeing and the smoother rhythm that carried most of the night before the lull after halftime. Embiid’s post seals and nail touches forced extra bodies to pinch, the short rolls from the other bigs held the weakside tag, and that gave Maxey, Edgecombe, and Grimes the kind of catch and shoot windows that invite balance, lift, and repeatable mechanics rather than rushed improvisation. When the ball touches the paint first, the next two passes arrive on time and on target, the corners stayed organized, and the floor tilted in a way that made Charlotte late to everything.
In the third quarter, the habits slipped and the Hornets flipped the game by turning empty jumpers into long rebounds and numbers the other way, and by creeping back into the lane when the Sixers stopped cutting behind the ball and settled for standstill spacing. Paint touches dried up, the offense stopped testing the low man, and Charlotte won the possession game with second chances and free trips in transition while stacking a 38-25 frame that turned a steady night into a test of composure. Drummond came in to bring calm and peace at the end of the third quarter after Embiid’s 20 minutes were up for the night.
Embiid’s minute restriction ended pretty much at the half. He said postgame he prefers Saturday night’s model of more minutes earlier than four short stints like in Boston. Embiid made a point to be more aggressive today than he was in Wednesday’s opener. He had 20 points in those 20 minutes, shooting 7-11 from the field and 3-6 from beyond the arc.
The closing sequence captured the blueprint that has raised the Sixers’ shooting numbers and can carry them forward on nights when the third quarter cuts against them, since the tie at 119 came out of simple actions that created a deep paint touch, forced help from the strong side, and turned into a drive and kick that found Grimes spotted and ready, and before that possession the defense earned the chance by staying home on shooters. This is what matters as the schedule settles in, not the single hot hand but the quality of the looks that the system manufactures, the way the bigs occupy space that matters, pulling in rebounds, and the commitment to stay disciplined to the same paint-first discipline that built the first-half lead and set up the late dagger.
Tonight, it was a new cast stepping up to drive the Sixers to another resilient win. This time, it was Grimes coming off the bench and dropping in 24 huge points, and Drummond really came up huge in the second half, perhaps better than the stat sheet would show. The telling stat was that he was +12 in points while he was in the game. That is huge while Embiid is on a minutes restriction. His rebounding and hustle are the reasons this comeback ended in a win.
This was a huge win over a talented squad, and this next man up mentality that is the overarching message so far in this young season is winning close games they lost last season. This is a good sign for a growing Sixers squad. Take the lessons of the third and move on.
Steve Hamilton
Steve may have been born in California, but don’t let that fool you. After dating a local woman and clashing with her and her family over sports for decades, he has an affinity for Philly sports. Balancing love for Philly and Bay Area sports teams may seem impossible, we can all agree that the Cowboys are the true evil.
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