December 23, 2024
Dan Hamilton/Imagn Images
Kyle Lowry's time as the Sixers' backup point guard may be running out.
Happy Monday! As we do at the start of every week, let's begin the week with another edition of 5 Sixers thoughts, focused on the Sixers' ongoing issues at backup point guard and other notes across the rotation:
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Lowry, 38, looked primed to be a critical rotation piece for the Sixers in 2024-25. During his first six games of the year, head coach Nick Nurse's trusted floor general was red-hot, shooting 60.0 percent from beyond the arc. Then things took a turn for the worse, thanks to harsh three-point shooting regression and injuries. In 13 games since his terrific stretch to open the year, Lowry has made just 10.7 percent of his three-point tries.
Nobody would expect Lowry to be a consistent scorer or tough bucket-getter at this stage of his career on this team. And the fact that he is not scoring a lot of points is not too much of an issue in itself. But right now, Lowry is failing to clear the requisite threshold of being capable of scoring to receive any respect as a ball-handler from opposing defenses. His complete lack of explosion off the dribble means not only that he cannot find avenues to score, but also fails to create advantages which enable him to use his brilliant passing chops.
Perhaps the most damning aspect of Lowry's season: he missed five games in the middle of November due to a right hip strain. The Sixers have played six games since he returned. During that span, Lowry has more missed games (2) than made shots (1). Lowry has played about 70 minutes during that span, and is 1-for-6 from the floor. He missed one game to rest, and another due to back spasms.
It is becoming increasingly difficult for Nurse to justify playing Lowry on a consistent basis. Could another favorite of his reenter the mix?
Dowtin, who Nurse helped convince to sign a two-way contract with the Sixers on two separate occasions after the two spent time together with the Toronto Raptors organization in 2022-23, had a brief opportunity to cameo as the Sixers' backup point guard when Tyrese Maxey missed time due to a hamstring injury. Dowtin, whose all-around skillset has often been praised by Nurse, only had a few worthwhile performances and found himself back in the G League.
Dowtin, who had not appeared in an NBA game in over a month, played the entire fourth quarter of the Sixers' loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday. While it was not exactly a high-leverage situation -- the Sixers were being blown out by the NBA's best team -- Dowtin did look like the best version of himself:
Jeff Dowtin Jr. played the entire fourth quarter of the Sixers' loss in Cleveland on Saturday night -- his first NBA appearance in over a month.
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 23, 2024
Dowtin scored nine points on 4-5 shooting from the field. All of his made shots: pic.twitter.com/R1UMQS8j27
With rookie guard Jared McCain out indefinitely with a torn meniscus, the team only has internal options if it wants to remove Lowry from the rotation and replace him with a new backup point guard behind Maxey: Dowtin and veteran Reggie Jackson, who has struggled quite a bit in his limited rotation opportunities.
Only so much can be taken away from a nine-game sample in the G League from a player who has already demonstrated he can dominate at that level, but for what it's worth, in nine games with the Delaware Blue Coats this season, Dowtin has averaged 24.6 points per game, shooting 53.8 percent from the field and knocking down 47.3 percent of his three-point attempts, good for an outstanding 65.1 true shooting percentage. He is clearly too good for the G League, but is he good enough for the NBA?
MORE: Dowtin talks relationship with Nurse, long-term ambitions
When George has been at his best as a scorer, he has been incredibly good. But while George's rebounding, passing and defensive playmaking have been pretty steady throughout the year, the nine-time All-Star's scoring has come and gone quite a bit.
In a September version of 5 Sixers thoughts, I discussed George's relatively low rim frequencies. Getting all the way downhill and scoring in the paint was the only real weakness I could find when it came to George's scoring ability, and it has hurt him quite a bit this season. His shooting numbers are down across the board, and plays like this can really hurt:
Paul George fails to create any separation off the dribble, then turns the ball over: pic.twitter.com/kJdyzJveFb
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 22, 2024
Of course, not all hope is lost for one of the most accomplished players in recent NBA history, whose shooting numbers figure to improve regardless of any changes to his scoring approach. One tweak the Sixers could make to free up George for easier shots more consistently is using him as the screener in two-man actions with Maxey.
Going out of your way to force switches repeatedly is sometimes a dangerous game -- as is encouraging less ball movement -- but when George screens for Maxey, defenses are often obligated to switch, and that pits George against a much smaller defender. Watch how easily George bullies Cavaliers point guard Darius Garland for a bucket on this play:
When Paul George screened for Tyrese Maxey, the Sixers forced a switch and generated two mismatches. The one they chose to attack: George against Darius Garland, who he bullies en route to an easy pull-up jumper: pic.twitter.com/qGaDTAcGVu
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 22, 2024
George has lived up to expectations in every department other than scoring the ball when he has been on the floor for the Sixers. But his efficiency as a scorer has been notably subpar relative to his career marks, and the Sixers need a more consistent version of him in that regard -- a version of George which does not have this many clunkers as a shooter and avoids disappearing for significant chunks of games.
Council had a dreadful start to the season, failing to impact games in any positive way. It was a troubling development for the second-year wing who showed so many signs of promise as a rookie.
During his rookie season, Council's most impressive and intriguing skill was his ability to draw fouls at will. But in his first 14 games this season, Council only attempted eight total free throw attempts, including zero free throw attempts in 11 of those appearances.
However, Council has found that knack again: in his last seven games, Council has notched 34 total free throw attempts -- despite only averaging about 17 minutes per game. He often loses control of the ball or his own body movements as he storms in the direction of the basket, but Council's brilliant understanding of how to generate contact has done wonders for him and the Sixers.
Just as importantly, after only being a decent shooter from the line as a rookie, Council is up to 85.7 percent from the line in 2024-25. If he can stabilize at his recent clip of foul-generating and make even close to 85 percent of his shots, it will be hard for Council to not be a rotation wing moving forward.
Perhaps the highlight of the Sixers' blowout defeat in Cleveland was this 38-footer Council cashed as the first half came to a close:
Ricky Council IV's 38-foot buzzer-beater in the second half in Cleveland on Saturday night: pic.twitter.com/OGdDSUij3q
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) December 22, 2024
"His energy is just incredible. When he has the ball and he starts running... nobody can stop him," Guerschon Yabusele said of Council after the Sixers' shootaround on Monday morning. "His energy in general: he goes for offensive rebounds, he shoots the ball, he attacks all the time. His ability to finish is amazing.... Every time he scores, we look at each other, like, 'Only he can do that.'"
Council is currently listed as questionable for the Sixers' battle against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night due to knee soreness.
Outside of McCain, the only Sixer to be ruled out for Monday's game is veteran Eric Gordon, who is listed as out with the designation of "right oral; surgery." There is still no public information about what happened to the soon-to-be 36-year-old, though it sounds as if the team does not expect him to be sidelined for a significant period of time.
After being out of the rotation for five consecutive games, Gordon rejoined Nurse's regular group as a result of McCain's injury. He has appeared in each of the Sixers' last three contests, averaging 17.3 minutes per game during that span.
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