December 08, 2023
The Sixers returned home Friday night for a contest against the struggling Atlanta Hawks, minus superstar point guard Trae Young. The Sixers had some defensive struggles at various points of the game but were able to take care of business and nab their 14th win of the season, 125-114. Here is what jumped out from the win:
• Joel Embiid got things going early as he often does, totaling 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists in just the first frame of this one. His presence on the glass was what jumped out most; his engagement there was outstanding. He continues to look entirely unstoppable on the offensive end of the floor, as he just gets whatever he wants on a regular basis.
• Nic Batum and De'Anthony Melton each knocked down a pair of first quarter triples, and Batum's were particularly impressive, as he showed off his lightning-quick release. He is one of the fastest in the NBA to get a shot up from beyond the arc, in part because he can catch the ball high and launch without dipping the ball at all. It sounds simple, but it is extremely rare, and it's something he has mastered.
• Tobias Harris has been far from his best self of late. In his last five games entering this one, he averaged just 11.2 points per game, shooting 38.3 percent from the field and 15.4 percent from three-point range. He missed two wide open jumpers in the first quarter -- one on a spot-up three, the other on a pull-up mid-range jumper.
• It looks like Robert Covington may be on the outskirts of the rotation right now. Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said pregame that about eight players are definitely in the rotation: the five starters (Tyrese Maxey, Melton, Batum, Harris and Embiid), Paul Reed, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Patrick Beverley. That leaves a spot or two for the likes of Marcus Morris Sr. -- who was a rotation regular in this one -- as well as Covington, Danuel House Jr., Jaden Springer, KJ Martin and Mo Bamba. Morris appears to be the incumbent, with Covington almost certainly being next in line. Covington's minutes in his second stint as a Sixer have largely been good, while Morris' have been up and down -- though he has had some very good moments.
• The Sixers' defense -- which Nurse suggested pregame is on the cusp of turning a corner -- struggled mightily in the second quarter, and in turn the Sixers were outscored 45-27 in the period and entered halftime trailing by half a dozen. It was another example of the Sixers playing down to their competition.
"I feel like it's going to slide in the other direction here over the next, I don't know, 20 games," Nurse said of the team's struggling defense. "I feel good about a lot of things, even though the other night I felt like we weren't playing as well."
• Maxey was able to get on one of his typical second quarter heaters, scoring 10 points and knocking down a pair of three-point tries. He entered this one shooting just 29.6 percent from beyond the arc in his last six games despite taking a whopping nine threes per game. Of course, he is only at his best and in borderline superstar form when he has his three-point shot working well. This was a good step in the right direction.
• Harris came back to the floor several minutes earlier than the rest of his teammates to get shots up during halftime, and then came out and had a terrific third quarter to get back on track. Harris did his scoring primarily at the rim in this one, which isn't exactly his M.O., but points are points. The Sixers will need Harris to play at a high level to get where they want to go, so this was an encouraging sign for them.
• After uncharacteristically going scoreless in the second quarter, Embiid heated back up at the start of the second half, scoring 13 points in the period and doing so efficiently. However, he and the Sixers struggled quite a bit when it came to keeping the Hawks off the offensive glass. It was a group effort by the Hawks, but it was led by rebounding extraordinaire Clint Capela and Villanova product Saddiq Bey.
• It is immediately apparent how much the Sixers needed Oubre to return to action. As he did over and over during the first eight games of the season, in this one it felt like all of his biggest plays came at the perfect times. His value to this team goes beyond the box score.
• In a major surprise, Nurse pulled Reed from the rotation in the fourth quarter, instead opting to play Bamba as the backup center when Embiid rested. Reed had a few turnovers in his first quarter stint, but was not noticeably poor on either end of the floor. This will be a very interesting situation to monitor moving forward after Bamba nearly helped the Sixers knock off the Celtics in Boston last Friday.
• With a chance to make a run and put the game away in the middle of the fourth quarter, the Sixers instead allowed the Hawks to tie the game and then eventually retake the lead with around five minutes to play. They struggled in particular defending sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic and Philly native De'Andre Hunter.
• Embiid took a hard fall late in the game and came up in severe pain, seemingly being bothered by a knee injury. He never came out of the game, but was noticeably slower as he labored down the court. He did, though, come up with a few key blocks in the immediate aftermath of the fall.
• Despite Embiid's knee ailment and some shaky moments, the Sixers were able to make just enough plays down the stretch to sneak away with a win -- albeit, on a night when they probably should not have needed to.
