PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers brought in Eric Gordon in free agency with the hope that he would space the floor and make things happen for this group on the offensive end. For the most part, he did as he shot 40.9% from deep on 3.5 attempts per game.
Unfortunately for him, he had his season cut short at just 30 games after having to undergo right wrist surgery. He was having a terrific season for the Sixers after a slow start before having everything end abruptly due to the surgery.
Gordon gave the Sixers what they were asking for. It was just an unfortunate end for him, and the Sixers as a whole, due to the unforgiving injury bug.
“It was tough, because I wanted to play as many games as I can,” said Gordon. “I mean, it was hurting bad when it happened. So I just had to—I was trying to grind through it for a little while, and then when I get hit with that, it was like, your season has to the end. So, of course, it was disappointing, and this year it was tough for us, too, so when you reflect on that, it’s just been a tough overall year.”
As far as the future is concerned, Gordon has a $3.4 million player option for the 2025-26 season. One has to believe there is a bit of unfinished business in Philadelphia when considering the expectations of the season and how things went. The Sixers were supposed to be title contenders. Instead, it was a 24-58 season due to injuries and other factors.
“Oh, no question,” Gordon added. “I mean, who would ever thought we would have the year that we had? Of course, I would expect every guy to get healthy, hone in, and treat next season like how it should be. The past few years here were a playoff team, championship caliber team, and that was just our expectation through this year. So it’s kind of got to get back to that.”
The Sixers did have a team meeting after a bad loss in Miami back in November. That loss dropped the Sixers to 2-11 on the season as there were early signs of struggle for Philadelphia.
“Like, we shouldn’t be in that position, I felt like,” Gordon added. “Especially, that early in the year to have a conversation as a team. We shouldn’t be in that position, but like I said, we went through a lot. Injuries, trying to figure out ways to get chemistry, figuring out—we even got to the point where it’s like we were trying to figure out ways to win. Like I said this day, it’s been tough all year. That was a crucial time in early in the year where we just really couldn’t overcome.”
One can call the 2024-25 season a “wash”. It is what it is. Anything that could go wrong for this team did go wrong and the Sixers need to now make the corrections needed to return strong in 2025-26. Will Gordon be a part of their nucleus? That remains to be seen, but he feels as if there is some unfinished business for this group to figure out.
