March 18, 2024
Looking to nab a second consecutive home victory before heading out on a lengthy west coast road trip, the Sixers played host to a Jimmy Butler-less Miami Heat team. The Sixers put together a well-rounded performance, controlling much of the game and handing the Heat a 98-91 loss despite a fourth quarter scare. Here is what jumped out from the win:
You may not remember what happened last time Maxey played against the Heat. It was a forgettable showing for the All-Star guard: Maxey had one of the worst games of his career on Christmas Day 2023, scoring 12 points and shooting an abysmal 4-20 from the field.
Well, in the first quarter of this one, Maxey surpassed that total with ease, scoring 17 points on 6-9 shooting. Maxey was magnificent, scoring in a wide variety of fashions. He opened the game with a mid-range jumper, got to the free throw line and knocked down a pair of threes -- including an impressive, high-arcing shot off of the step-back move that he has mastered.
Acclimating to life as a number one option every night has been a challenge for Maxey, who at times has seen his efficiency dip due to the absence of Joel Embiid. But he is continuing to make major strides when it comes to countering defenses that are now often designed to limit his scoring.
Payne has scored in double-figures in five of his last seven contests, playing 22.0 minutes per game during that stretch, and is averaging three assists per contest over that time. He has been particularly effective in the team's last two contests, scoring 23 points on 13 shots in just over 30 minutes of play. Payne saw extended run in the first half, and continued to help spur offense. He knocked down a triple on his first shot attempt pop the game and collected three assists.
Payne has continued to show that not only can he score in bunches, but he knows how to leverage his score-first reputation into high-quality shot attempts for his teammates. He is far from the defender that his predecessor in Patrick Beverley is, but he is a considerably more versatile offensive weapon.
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse has in the past attempted to solidify Oubre as the Sixers' leading scorer and shot-taker off the bench, but due to injuries the veteran wing has found himself back in the starting five time and time again. Nurse may have finally made peace with that, as Oubre continues to start over trade deadline acquisition Buddy Hield and Nic Batum.
For as long as Embiid is sidelined, it looks like Oubre is simply going to have to start: his constant rim pressure is unmatched across the rest of the roster (save for Maxey), and even with Kyle Lowry now being a fixture of the starting unit, Oubre is by far their second-best option when it comes to generating offense -- even if he is almost exclusively generating offense for himself.
Miami sharpshooter Duncan Robinson is one of the most shot-makers from distance in the entire NBA. He entered this game shooting nearly 10 threes per game over his last seven contests, and making those shots at over a 41 percent clip. Especially with Butler out, running Robinson around screens and utilizing his shooting versatility are critical aspects of Miami's offense in a half-court setting.
That is where Batum and Lowry come into the equation.
Nurse has handed Batum premium defensive assignments since his arrival in Philadelphia, but that most often comes against ball-handlers. In this one, his job was to chase Robinson around all of those screens and deny him the ball. When Batum was not on Robinson, it was often Lowry who defended Robinson -- someone he shared the floor with for multiple seasons when he was in Miami.
Robinson finished the game with just one three-point attempt. He scored three points on 1-5 shooting. The Sixers' defense was excellent in this one, and the work of two veterans against Robinson was one of the biggest reasons why.
The Miami Heat can never be counted out -- even when their opponent carries a 14-point lead into the fourth quarter. The Heat opened the fourth quarter on a massive 20-6 run to tie the game, and it looked like everything was falling apart for the Sixers. But then Hield knocked down a three, Lowry followed up with one of his own and Oubre put home a ridiculous finish against Miami All-Star center Bam Adebayo. But the most important thing was that the Sixers buckled down on the defensive end and got stops. It gave them just enough to hang on and notch their second consecutive victory.
