The crowd was worthy of a playoff game, the players were all juiced up, and then the Sixers and Celtics actually went out and played a basketball game. It was all downhill from there. The Celtics backed into a 102-92 victory over the home team, and what should have been an exciting home opener turned into a showcase of how not to officiate a basketball game.
But before we get too deep into the officiating complaints, some thoughts on what else happened on the court Friday evening.
Fultz needs to have the ball in his hands more, second unit or not
Markelle Fultz is still dealing with the most mysterious shooting problem in recent memory. For example, look at this moment in the third quarter, when he has nobody within a country mile of him on the court, and yet his head never even lifts to consider shooting a three-point shot.
Frankly, this is insane for a guy who was not shy at all about scoring at the University of Washington. And this sort of thing only underscores a larger point: Fultz needs to have the ball in his hands a lot more than he has.
I know what you're thinking. "But Kyle, he had it in his hands there, and he just passed it off!" True though this may be, that sort of hesitation is even more of a killer if he's going to spend a lot of his time away from the ball. If teams know he isn't a credible threat to even attempt a three, they'll be happy to let him hesitate his life away on the perimeter, and hound him at the rim when he does drive. He was just 2-9 on the evening as a result of that strategy.
Where Fultz has shown he can do some damage is as the lead ballhandler. The Sixers cleared out for him on this possession late in the third, and after sealing off Rozier with a quick spin, Fultz waits right until Aron Baynes commits, and then he hooks his pal Embiid up with an easy dunk.
Fultz flourished in these sort of scenarios against the Wizards as well, but it's been much tougher sledding trying to get the same productivity from him as an off-ball wing in bench lineups. His coach acknowledged that it's something he has to consider in building Fultz's role moving forward.
"I think that it's going to be something where we put him in more pick-and-rolls, to try to get him more in the middle of the floor," said Brown. "Lately, just trying to get him up and down the floor and get his fitness base and find some level of confidence has been most on my mind. But I agree with you, he has a skill that we have to tap into there.
Embiid's shot distribution is not what it should be
"Probably the most difficult offensive game he's had as Philadelphia 76er." That's how Brett Brown described Joel Embiid's performance from the field on Friday night.
That is completely, 100 percent true, but every player has his offensive struggles, and Embiid is still getting his sea legs after a long layoff. The more concerning thing than the missed shots is where the shots are coming from. A quick look at his shot distribution chart through two games — yes, it's a small sample — highlights what a lot of fans have been yelling about.
Far too much of Embiid's work is being done outside the paint. This is partially by design, and it's obviously a major benefit to have a center who can stretch the floor. When Embiid is knocking down shots from outside, it makes life a hell of a lot easier on drivers like Ben Simmons and Fultz, because Embiid's man has to hug him near the perimeter.
The failure to get more shots in the paint is on Embiid, but it's also on his teammates. He had a couple possessions against the Celtics where he established good position against his man, only for the Sixers to miss him entirely or throw bad entry passes his way. You have to let the big dog eat, and he wasn't shy about saying so after the game.
"I didn't think they fronted me in the post, I just didn't think I got the ball enough in the post," said Embiid. "We got to do a better job of finding me in the post."
Ben Simmons needs to force contact on defenders, not the other way around
Ben Simmons is a large human being. It's just not always clear whether he knows it or wants to play like he is.
Perhaps this is more a product of the way he's been officiated prior to the NBA, but at the moment there are too many plays where Simmons lets up a little too early thinking a call is coming. This one from the second quarter stood out, when he made a bit of a yelp (you'll have to take my word without sound) and then sort of faded away from the basket with an attempt that bounced harmlessly off the side of the rim.
Jaylen Brown is a strong guy and a good athlete, but there's no reason he should be able to force Simmons into this sort of shot. He's strong enough and fast enough to power through defenders and get cleaner looks at the rim.
This is a consistency thing more than anything because he has shown the ability to get to his spots when he puts the jets on. He's just not in position to rely on getting calls yet, particularly since his free-throw shooting leaves a lot to be desired at the moment. Square that shoulder and show these dudes who owns that paint, pal.
Redick is the best run stopper money can buy
Not everything has to be negative, even if this game was quite the eyesore. The man Bryan Colangelo brought in to space the floor did it pretty darn effectively against Boston, sinking four of his seven attempts from beyond the arc.
Truthfully, Redick was a big reason the Sixers were able to hang around in a game where they played like complete garbage for large stretches of the game. It felt like every time the Sixers stagnated for any extended period of time, Redick came through with a shot to ease the pressure.
To say it has been a long time since the Sixers had a player like this might actually be underselling Redick's shooting ability; frankly, he might be the best shooter the franchise has ever had. And the best part is, Redick has never been better at using the threat of his jumper to get by his opponent and find an easier look closer to the basket.
Things got messy Friday night, but Redick was reliable as ever.
Those refs need to go on hiatus
The officiating in this game was an absolute trainwreck and was a major part of why neither team can get into a rhythm on offense. They were consistently bad both ways, calling ticky-tack fouls and botching calls left and right. There were a whopping 31 fouls called in the first half alone, with the grand total coming to 54 between the two teams.
The defining sequence of their evening came a little over halfway through the second quarter, when a phantom foul call inspired Philadelphia into a classic chant: "Ref you suck!" It was the loudest the crowd had been that quarter because the stop-start nature of the game had kept them out of it for a bit.
As if they had been willed into it by the home fans, the officials immediately made a call in Philadelphia's favor. It did not satisfy the restless natives. "You still suck!" chants were up next. Never change, Philly.
