The Sixers are fighting hard and racking up losses, netting the best of both worlds in their tank race

This makeshift 76ers have lost six straight games and 23 of their last 27. So this version of the team clearly isn’t as good as conceived.

But give the Sixers credit for competing, especially when they have 10 sidelined players and their talent disparity often is the equivalent of bringing a butter knife to a gunfight.

“You know, at the end of the day, I’m a competitor,” Guerschon Yabusele said following Wednesday’s 119-114 loss to the Washington Wizards at the Wells Fargo Center. “I want to win every game that I play. I really hate losing. So, yeah, it’s been tough the past couple of weeks — not going to lie — but I have to keep pushing. You know, we have to be pros.”

» READ MORE: Tanking Sixers pick up much-needed loss to Washington Wizards to keep NBA’s fifth-worst record

Yabusele said that involves giving 100% whenever he puts on the jersey and steps on the court.

“I make sure that I leave everything out there, play my best,” he said. “ … Just try to get the guys to try to follow through and then really give everything we can on the court and keep fighting.”

That approach enabled the Sixers to battle back from a 16-point deficit with 4 minutes, 44 seconds remaining against the Wizards (16-56).

They went on a 14-2 run to pull within four points with 38.3 seconds remaining. But that was as close as the Sixers got while resorting to some tank-friendly rotations and substitutions down the stretch.

The much-needed setback dropped them to 23-50. They remain tied with the Brooklyn Nets for the league’s fifth-worst record with nine games remaining.

The Sixers are tanking to keep their first-round pick, which is top-six protected. They will have a 63.9% chance of keeping the pick by finishing with the fifth-worst mark.

“I can’t really recall when we’ve just got our door totally blown off for the whole game with this group,” coach Nick Nurse said. “They’ve had some rough moments, but they’ve usually fought their way back into it. I think even in New Orleans [on Monday], we were getting smacked around pretty good there by 20, and we came all the way back and took the lead. So they keep fighting and we can usually find some combination.

“I thought those guys coming off the bench did a nice job just of energy and changing the game a little bit. [Phillip] Wheeler plus-10, [Jared] Butler plus-1, [Adem] Bona minus-4 off the bench is not too bad.”

» READ MORE: Sixers-Wizards takeaways: Justin Edwards keeps shining; Will Smith is honored

Wheeler finished with four points and two assists hours after signing a 10-day contract with the Sixers.

Quentin Grimes paced the squad with 22 points, while Yabusele added 21 points and eight rebounds. Justin Edwards had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and five steals for his first career double-double.

The forward has tallied at least 18 points in six consecutive games, which is the second-longest streak by an NBA rookie this season. (Jared McCain did it for nine games in November.) Edwards is averaging 20.3 points while shooting 47.5% on three-pointers during this stretch.

“He’s been pretty efficient lately for us,” Yabusele said. “Most of the time when he gets the ball, he can really finish over there at the rim and it’s been pretty good for us in terms of energy, or really just going to the rim.

”You know, it’s been really tough to be guarded by the other teams, and we really need him to keep doing that — especially at the time we are in right now, we really need to keep pushing.”

In a way, the Sixers are getting the best of both worlds. They’re fighting hard while still compiling much-needed losses.