Quentin Grimes is Finally Back to Producing in Absence of 76ers’ Big Three

While the past couple of weeks haven’t been great for the Philadelphia 76ers in terms of wins and the injury report, one man sure is winning with the production and performances he’s put together.

76ers guard Quentin Grimes has been with the team for just over a full season now, after being acquired at last year’s trade deadline from the Mavericks. Last season was a wash for the 76ers as injuries derailed any success that they sought would come with their new big three of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George. However, one bright spot was Grimes and his ability to take over as the team’s go-to scoring option.

In just 28 games last season with the 76ers, Grimes averaged an impressive 21.9 points per game, finishing the 2024-25 season with a career high 14.6 points per game. In the 28 games with the 76ers last season, Grimes scored 25 points or more in 14 of those contests.

It showed the 76ers that they had a valuable piece in Grimes, and if they could keep him around for cheap, he could be a huge piece of non-star scoring that the 76ers have been looking for. Heading into the 2025 offseason, Grimes was a restricted free agent, but due to his asking for such a large contract and teams not being able to afford that, the 76ers were able to bring Grimes back on the qualifying offer.

Despite his success in the starting lineup last season, this year, Grimes has been the main man off the bench for Nick Nurse’s squad. For the first part of the season without Embiid, Grimes was a fantastic option for the 76ers, providing multiple 20+ point nights, with some games being the top guy if Tyrese Maxey wasn’t knocking down his normal shots.

However, when Embiid returned, the big three fully healthy, and the emergence of rookie star VJ Edgecombe, Grimes’ shots and points per game took a dip over the middle months of the season. He went from averaging over 15 points a game to dipping to under 12, and going nearly two months without having a game over 16 points.

His shot numbers went down as he went from taking around 14-16 shots to getting barely 8-9. Now this makes sense, as with lots of mouths to feed, someone was going to take a hit, and in the 76ers’ case, it was Grimes. But like every 76ers season, injuries come, and they come in bunches.

Embiid went down with an oblique injury, Maxey injured his pinky, and George remains out due to PED suspension. With less than two months left in the season, the 76ers were without over 60 of their nightly points, and need someone to step back up in their absence.

Up stepped Grimes, who, over the 76ers’ past seven games, has averaged 22.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, and three assists while shooting 47.4 from the field. He’s been the leading scorer in three of the seven games, with two of them being wins, including his season-high 31 points in the 76ers’ recent win over the Trail Blazers.

After his season-high performance, Grimes had interesting words when asked about his recent scoring stretch and increase in workload. “I tried to stay in the flow of the game and stay aggressive, being aggressive from the tip of the ball, forcing the defense to make a decision,” Grimes said.

“I feel great, I could shoot more right now if y’all need me to.”

Grimes is back to himself from last season, a player who, on any night, can drop a cool 20 points and provide for a bench unit that, at times, has struggled to give you any production. Multiple times this year, the team has needed its stars to provide the majority of the scoring and production, and come playoff time, that can’t always be the case.

Teams like the Celtics, Thunder, Knicks, Nuggets, the top-tier teams in the league, not only have the stars but the bench depth that provides when their name gets called. Grimes can be that guy for the 76ers, someone who can take the pressure off the big guns.

In four months, Grimes will be an outright free agent, free to sign with whatever team pleases him. The 76ers have made moves this year, mainly trading Jared McCain to the Thunder, to help make re-signing Grimes a priority. Now, for a bit, it didn’t seem like Grimes would be worth bringing back. However, if he keeps this kind of play up, he could be in line to stay in Philadelphia for the future and get paid handsomely in the process.

That puts us in a bind with some other players out

Get New Articles Emailed Right To Your Inbox: