76ers’ Nick Nurse explained why he finally started playing breakout bench scorer

The Philadelphia 76ers walked into Wednesday night’s matchup against the Utah Jazz missing almost their entire starting lineup, but they left with a gritty 106-102 win thanks to an unexpected hero. While Tyrese Maxey handled the heavy lifting with 25 points, it was the breakout performance of Jabari Walker that caught everyone’s attention and finally gave head coach Nick Nurse a reason to smile.

Walker was a force off the bench, tallying a massive double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds. He was efficient from the floor, shooting 7-of-12 overall and an impressive 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. It was the kind of performance the 76ers desperately needed with Joel Embiid, Paul George, and VJ Edgecombe all sidelined.

After the game, Nurse explained that Walker’s sudden surge in minutes isn’t a fluke. “We’ve been trying to get him to play like that. Coz he is, and I’ve said this a long time ago, like he’s a really good shooter, you just have to get used to the NBA feel and having enough to pull the trigger on them and noticeably better in his last few games and he’s just running the floor.”

"We've been trying to get him to play like that."

Nick Nurse discusses what Jabari Walker brings to the table. | @Kia pic.twitter.com/GvXflmD5ap

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) March 5, 2026

Perhaps the most entertaining part of Walker’s rise is his own explanation for his high-motor style. When asked about his emotive nature and hustle plays, Walker offered a hilarious self-assessment, claiming that people who know him know he is “actually kind of crazy”. He joked that “something’s really wrong” with him, but that energy clearly translated to the court as he helped Philadelphia snap a two-game skid.

The victory also featured 16 points from Quentin Grimes and a clutch follow-dunk from Adem Bona that tied the game late. For a 76ers team fighting to maintain its playoff positioning, finding a reliable bench weapon like Walker might be the silver lining of an injury-plagued week.

The post 76ers’ Nick Nurse explained why he finally started playing breakout bench scorer appeared first on ClutchPoints.