What does a successful sophomore season look like for Justin Edwards?

Well, at least last season went well for somebody.

After going from one of the top high school recruits in the nation to an undrafted free agent in the span of one college season, Justin Edwards was not expected to see a lot of minutes for the 2024-25 season. Even after the disastrous start, it wasn’t until the calendar flipped to January that he played more than five minutes a game.

As the rest of the roster continued to dwindle though, Edwards was able to take advantage of the increasing number of opportunities that were coming his way. He would end up playing 44 games in his first year as a pro, starting 26 of them. He averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and one steal per game playing about 26 minutes a night.

What’s exciting about Edwards is that he does all of the complimentary role player things from the forward position. Something that’s felt rare on a team that’s roster has become increasingly top (or bottom) heavy. He can attack closeouts, he knocks down enough shots when it’s swung to him, and held his own defensively despite drawing a lot of tough assignments on the wing.

So it wasn’t the biggest shock when he didn’t look nearly as good in his second go-around in summer league. With how many games VJ Edgecombe missed, Edwards became the primary focal point of the offense. He shot just 36% from the field and only 69% from the free throw line. He couldn’t stop giving the ball away either, averaging 3.3 turnovers to 1.7 assists.

It’s a bit surprising that a second-year player, especially one who had a fair amount of success in his rookie season, doesn’t dominate summer league. It might not matter in Edwards’ case though.

Even if the Sixers aren’t completely healthy, his role will still be decreased to be that complementary wing around their guard talent. The chaotic, structureless basketball that is summer league isn’t always the easiest environment for that type of player to thrive.

The other reason is that Edwards already has a better track record of scoring consistently in NBA games than any small sample size of summer league. For the last month and a half of last season, he was either the 1A or 1B scoring option, depending on if Quentin Grimes was available.

From the beginning of March, when Tyrese Maxey and Paul George were shut down, to the end of the season he averaged 13.1 points per game. He took over 11 shots per game during that stretch and maintained an effective field goal percentage of 52.7%. His usage rate climbed to 18.7% during this time which, according to Cleaning the Glass, is above league average.

It’s possible the best development for Edwards this upcoming season and beyond is just more of the same. If he’s able to continue being a wing who can score and defend at an above average rate, it’s easy to slide that in to just about any rotation.

While his summer league effort might have thrown some cold water on this idea, there is a chance there’s even more potential to be unlocked in terms of his scoring. He really got more aggressive as a driver as the season went on, and showed that he was able to get himself past some good defenders to get to the basket. The midrange pull-up that’s also featured a lot here was something he was able to get to more and more.

With how crowded this backcourt projects to be, those opportunities might just not present themselves for Edwards. That could be for the best — some players are better off being optimized for a specific role. How he is able to build on a pleasant surprise of a rookie season should be one of the most exciting storylines for the Sixers going forward.

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