Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse applauded his team’s composure in Thursday’s 99–98 victory over the Golden State Warriors, highlighting the decisive final sequence.
“Well, I think both plays were pretty good presence of mind by everybody… Tyrese created the shot. He’s got to take those. He’s the guy that’s taken those,” Nurse said.
Nurse credited rookie VJ Edgecombe for crashing the boards for the game-winning tip-in, noting, “VJ’s put back’s pretty big, but that’s a highlight for a while for Tyrese with that block… He’s got a nose for the ball… even though he’s a rookie, he can make those plays.”
The coach also addressed the team’s second-half struggles in protecting a 24-point lead. “We had a little bit of funky rhythm with the rotations… we committed a ton of turnovers… that just got them going,” Nurse said, citing the Warriors’ aggressive offensive rebound and switching defense as factors.
Despite the challenge, Nurse emphasized the importance of learning from every outcome: “I’m going to absolutely congratulate him, man. Win is a win… and try to get the next one.”
Joel Embiid’s minutes were carefully managed, with Nurse explaining, “He was right where we wanted him to be… didn’t really give it much consideration… he didn’t want to cool down as much, and I was okay with that.” Nurse also praised Adem Bona for stepping in effectively during key moments. “He did an okay job… got a put back right away and did a couple things… it’s good. That’s what we’re doing over there, figuring out which guys can make a play.”
On Domantas Sabonis’ performance, Nurse said, “He was great… he just plays hard. He was really our only source of rebounding for a while… he saved the day on a number of possessions.”
The 76ers overcame a late surge from the Warriors, who erased a 24-point deficit and briefly took the lead in the final minute. Tyrese Maxey scored 35 points and blocked De’Anthony Melton’s final-second layup to secure the win, while Edgecombe scored the go-ahead basket with 0.9 seconds remaining.
Philadelphia improved to 12–9 with the win and will visit Milwaukee on Friday, while Golden State falls to 11–12 and continues its road trip in Cleveland on Saturday.
