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Looking to “pick off” a win despite being severely short-handed, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse’s team played host to the similarly-struggling Golden State Warriors Wednesday night, and once again the Sixers were dominated on their own home floor, 127-104. Here is what jumped out from another resounding loss:
Jaden Springer gets the start
With Joel Embiid, De’Anthony Melton, Nic Batum, Danuel House Jr., Marcus Morris Sr. and Robert Covington all unavailable in this one, Nurse was forced to give many more minutes than he typically would to a few fringe rotation pieces. One of them, Springer, actually drew a start — and was tasked with the Stephen Curry assignment on the defensive end of the floor.
Springer’s NBA existence is a peculiar one — he oftentimes is forced to sit, but when he does get in the game, he is given the most difficult of assignments.
Springer held Curry to a scoreless first quarter, in which the former MVP shot 0-4 from the field and 0-3 from beyond the arc. Curry hit what was originally scored a four-point play opportunity over Springer, but Nurse issued a rare first quarter challenge which was successful, overturning the Curry three and Springer foul into an offensive foul by Curry.
Curry only scored two points in the entire first half — both on free throws. He did not register a single field goal attempt in the second quarter.
A defensive masterclass in the first quarter
Springer was far from the only Sixer who stepped up on the defensive end of the floor early on in this one. The entire team was in lockstep, forming a cohesive unit which shut down just about everything Golden State’s once-potent offense tried to do.
The Warriors scored just 15 points in the entire first frame, shooting 5-22 from the field and 1-7 from beyond the arc. Golden State missed a few good looks, but their brutal output was largely the product of a stifling Sixers defense. Paul Reed, who blocked two shots in the period, did an excellent job protecting the rim to help lead the team’s defense alongside Springer and others.
KJ Martin produces
Martin was another fringe rotation player Nurse was forced to rely on, but the fourth-year athletic wing gave the Sixers solid minutes in the first half. Martin scored seven points on 3-3 shooting — two buckets inside and a corner triple. As trade talks linger and escalate over the next handful of hours, it will be interesting to see how much value Martin may hold league-wide — particularly among young, rebuilding teams.
Tyrese Maxey, offense struggle mightily in first half
Despite their terrific defensive effort in the first 24 minutes of the game, the Sixers entered halftime trailing — all because their offense was mostly inept. Tobias Harris led the team in scoring in the first half, posting nine points on as many shot attempts. The team was a combined 19-46 (41.3 percent) from the field, while making only two of their 14 attempts from beyond the arc.
Tyrese Maxey, who is, of course, supposed to be the engine that keeps this vehicle moving while Embiid is out, continued to struggle against blitzes out of pick-and-roll offense. There is no doubt that the first-time All-Star is a brilliant offensive player, capable of doing tremendous things as a scorer. But with Embiid off the floor, he is quickly learning how difficult it is to be the primary focus of an opposing defense. Playing alongside perhaps the most dominant force in the NBA makes things a whole lot easier for a guard like Maxey.
Maxey should, in theory, see more shots with Embiid out, and that should translate to more points. But first, Maxey and the Sixers have to prove they are able to consistently defeat the kind of aggressive coverages they have been seeing frequently since Embiid went down.
More difficulties for Kelly Oubre Jr.
Oubre has not looked like his best self in quite a while now — his three-point shots have stopped falling, and his finishing around the rim has been extremely suspect. Oubre is locked into a starting spot because of how many players are injured. But if this team ever gets fully healthy again, it must hope Oubre looks a lot more like he did early on in the season, because he has been overexposed in this role.
Sixers dominated and put away in third quarter
The Sixers’ third quarter performance in this one was so rough that not only did it axe any chances they had of winning the game, but it was legitimately uncomfortable to watch at times. On one end of the floor, the Warriors got hot — Andrew Wiggins, in particular, lit up the Sixers in the period with his shooting and scoring. Warriors youngster Jonathan Kuminga also took advantage of a Sixers defense that looked far less cohesive and communicative than it did in the first half.
On the other end of the floor, the only Sixer who could pull off anything of note was Martin, who knocked down another triple and used his athleticism to generate a few chances to score at the rim. Maxey’s struggles continued, Oubre’s finishing looked even worse, Furkan Korkmaz looked unplayable, Patrick Beverley’s tricks were not working, and the entire team cratered as a result.
In all, the Sixers were outscored by 20 — 43-23 — in the third quarter. It was a period which tanked their chances and was emblematic of all of their issues that have emerged in the absence of Embiid and the others who were unavailable.
The elephant in the room
With Thursday afternoon’s NBA Trade Deadline looming, one must ask: will Sixers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey look to be especially aggressive over the next handful of hours in giving Nurse more useful pieces to use while the team is so drastically undermanned, or — with his team plummeting in the standings and no certainty about Embiid’s return — will he play things conservatively? We will find out soon.
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Adam Aaronson
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