Nick Nurse explains where Philly went wrong against the Pelicans

Nick Nurse broke why Philadelphia The 76ers faltered in the loss at the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night.

Nurse is in his eighth year as a coach, his third with the 76ers. He has kept the franchise stable while developing its young and growing backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, so they are in the playoffs this season. However, the team tends to underperform in some of their contests, especially with their most recent loss to the Pelicans.

sister reflected in the loss after the game, via NBC Sports Philadelphia. He pointed to the shooting struggles from beyond the arc, seeing how New Orleans took advantage of Philadelphia’s woes.

“We were 3-for-24 from three ourselves; that was a lot of opportunities for them to make turnovers. They were like 12-for-20 or something. And I just think we weren’t in the mood enough for some of them, some of them were caused by penetration to beat us in the lane too easily and that was a real pass from the front line and we held the line well enough. and then to be able to come back and challenge hard enough, right? Sister said.

Nick Nurse falls apart as the Sixers collapse offensively and defensively in their matchup with the Pelicans. | @Kia pic.twitter.com/4fv89F9u27

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilli) February 22, 2026

As Nick Nurse, the 76ers played against the Pelicans

Nick Nurse and the 76ers have the talent to make some noise in the playoffs. However, their loss to the Pelicans shows they still have work to do to get to the next step.

Four players scored in double figures for Philadelphia in the loss, including Maxey. He finished with 27 points, seven assists, five steals and three rebounds. He shot 9 of 23 from the field, including 2 of 11 from beyond the arc and 7 of 8 from the free throw line. Kelly Oubre Jr. followed with 25 points and five rebounds, VJ Edgecomb had 14 points and five rebounds, while Quentin Grimes had 11 points and three assists.

Philadelphia improved to a 30-26 record on the season, holding onto sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings. They are above the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic while trailing the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers.

Coming off a four-game losing streak, the 76ers will look to get back into the win column in their next game. They stay on the road when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves on February 22nd at 7pm ET.