VJ Edgecombe has strong words for Tirese McKay after he was hit by the Magic

The Philadelphia 76ers entered the 2025-26 season with so much uncertainty. But one thing’s for sure: This 76ers team will be nothing like last year’s, injury woes notwithstanding. On Monday night, the 76ers won their third straight to start the year, defeating the Orlando Magic, 136-124. despite being without Joel Embiid and Paul George. Without those two veterans, the burden was on Tyrese McKay to lead, and he did – finishing with 43 points and eight assists on 15-32 shooting from the field.

McKay has been hot to start the year, and he looks like the undisputed best player on the 76ers in the process. He has averaged 37 points in the first three games of the campaign, and is playing as if he wants to completely erase the memories of their nightmare 2024-25.

And with a growing novice VJ Edgecombe is coming into his own this quick along with Maxie in the 76ers backfield, there there is no better star in the NBA as a mentor to the third overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft.

“Super fun guy to play with. Gotta win every night (with Tyrese). Gotta go out there and win, man. He’s elite, man. He’s a real leader. Kudos to Tyrese,” Edgecomb said in his postgame interview, via the 76ers’ official X account (formerly Twitter).

“He’s elite, man. He’s a true leader. Kudos to Tyrese” –@vj_edgecombe about sharing the hinterland with @TireseMakei @PennMedicine pic.twitter.com/2plVIkO5fO

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sikers) October 28, 2025

McKay seems to find the optimal balance between being aggressive with the basket and letting his teammates help him. Edgecombe was very capable, as evidenced by his 25 points per game average to start his career, and they were out of touch with each other — they learned very quickly how to play alongside each other.

The 76ers have their backcourt of the future, and the incredible play of the McKay-Edgecombe duo should allow Philly to bring in Embiid and George more slowly.

76ers’ VJ Edgecombe is the early favorite for Rookie of the Year

With the third pick, the 76ers reportedly settled on Edgecomb or Ace Bailey. Bailey was originally teased to go third, but some off-field issues and his refusal to work for teams tainted his action. This ended up being a huge blessing for the 76ers, as Edgecombe was far and away the best rookie in his class so far.

Edgecombe already looks like a seasoned veteranand is just in his third career game. Meanwhile, Cooper Flagg went just 1-9 in the Dallas Mavericks’ loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, while Ace Bailey is languishing on the Utah Jazz’s bench.