Game 34: Sixers @ Magic - 7pm

[ivysixer2000]

If three defenders are in the paint, how do you expect Embiid to get to the rim? Orlando chose to pack the paint and we did not have an answer. Shots weren't falling and our offense was too rigidly focused on post ups.

The starting lineup has some spacing issues but the same thing happened when Embiid played with the backups.

He needs to get deeper position so that he forces the double team to commit. When he gets the ball so far away its easier for the help defense to sit a few feet under the three point line and cover both their defender and Embiid. The issue is quite fundamental really, he needs to be able to get the ball deeper and not get pushed out or allow the defender to front him and the passer needs to pass him the ball at the correct time. He also needs to feel comfortable playing with his back to the basket which is not the case at the moment. He needs to set the tone because he is the only one that can create his shot and put the defense off balance. If he settles for jumpers the half court offense stalls unless we are hot from the 3.

In any case the team cannot allow the opponent to determine so easily how they play. Half of the win is forcing your opponent to fight on your terms.

You can't beat better teams playing four on five. Ben simply has to shoot. It has to be nonnegotiable.

We're currently 8-7 against above .500 teams. Our next eight games are Miami, Indiana and Houston
(on the road), OKC and Boston (at home), Dallas and Indiana (on the road) and Brooklyn (at home).

They all now know that when the playoffs come Ben won't shoot, so they can double down on Embiid.
There's only one solution. Ben has to shoot at least giving our bigs a chance to be in position to rebound.

I know its an easy solution for Ben to shoot, but really I only have confidence in him with a corner 3. Other than that, he lacks any touch on jumpers and could hurt us more than help. Problem is he isn't even listening to his own coach, no way a player should be able to get away with as much as Ben has.

Embiid needs to stop doing his Patrick Ewing impression (yeah I think about Ewing every time Jojo takes some jumper, the very thing that lessened Ewing's effect on the game). There are only so many elbow jumpers I want to see him take per game.

Our biggest issue is Brett, he's just not motivating this team to play every night, which is solely on him.

[VDT]

If three defenders are in the paint, how do you expect Embiid to get to the rim? Orlando chose to pack the paint and we did not have an answer. Shots weren't falling and our offense was too rigidly focused on post ups.

The starting lineup has some spacing issues but the same thing happened when Embiid played with the backups.

He needs to get deeper position so that he forces the double team to commit. When he gets the ball so far away its easier for the help defense to sit a few feet under the three point line and cover both their defender and Embiid. The issue is quite fundamental really, he needs to be able to get the ball deeper and not get pushed out or allow the defender to front him and the passer needs to pass him the ball at the correct time. He also needs to feel comfortable playing with his back to the basket which is not the case at the moment. He needs to set the tone because he is the only one that can create his shot and put the defense off balance. If he settles for jumpers the half court offense stalls unless we are hot from the 3.

In any case the team cannot allow the opponent to determine so easily how they play. Half of the win is forcing your opponent to fight on your terms.

You can't beat better teams playing four on five. Ben simply has to shoot. It has to be nonnegotiable.

We're currently 8-7 against above .500 teams. Our next eight games are Miami, Indiana and Houston
(on the road), OKC and Boston (at home), Dallas and Indiana (on the road) and Brooklyn (at home).

They all now know that when the playoffs come Ben won't shoot, so they can double down on Embiid.
There's only one solution. Ben has to shoot at least giving our bigs a chance to be in position to rebound.

There is literally 0% chance this year that Simmons is going to shoot good enough that he will force opponents to guard him. And team has issues even when Simmons is not playing.

[Kobblehead]

Embiid played bad, settling for jumpers all game, which is the reason for his low efficiency.

The team desperately needs some perimeter shot creation and a more structured offense in general.

Embiid needs to set the tone, get deeper position and stop settling for jumpers.

It feels like that's just his game now. That fighting for deep positioning and low post stuff is exhausting. Seems like he's preserving white knuckle performances like that for important games against elite competition and playoffs.

[Toney22Sixers]

Just can't lose to teams like Orlando, Washington, Brooklyn, etc...if we want home court in the first round. It seems as though Al Horford and Joel are pacing themselves to the playoffs? They play about 50 to 60% 75% of the time.

[rzzzzz]

. That fighting for deep positioning and low post stuff is exhausting.

Don't seem to remember Kareem, Hakeem, etc. needing to fight near that much for all those efficient shots near the rim. Maybe they ran plays or something.

[VDT]

Embiid played bad, settling for jumpers all game, which is the reason for his low efficiency.

The team desperately needs some perimeter shot creation and a more structured offense in general.

Embiid needs to set the tone, get deeper position and stop settling for jumpers.

It feels like that's just his game now. That fighting for deep positioning and low post stuff is exhausting. Seems like he's preserving white knuckle performances like that for important games against elite competition and playoffs.

He played the same against the Bucks, he just hit a couple more jumpers. And he doesnt need to do it every play but it should be often enough. He is the only one on the team that can create his shot, draw fouls and draw double teams in the half court. If he settles for jumpers it is very hard for the half court offense to work.

And it shouldnt be that hard to get a deeper position with his size. He doesnt have to wrestle with his defender he just needs to get to his spot and hold his ground.

[hookshot199]

The starting lineup has some spacing issues but the same thing happened when Embiid played with the backups.

He needs to get deeper position so that he forces the double team to commit. When he gets the ball so far away its easier for the help defense to sit a few feet under the three point line and cover both their defender and Embiid. The issue is quite fundamental really, he needs to be able to get the ball deeper and not get pushed out or allow the defender to front him and the passer needs to pass him the ball at the correct time. He also needs to feel comfortable playing with his back to the basket which is not the case at the moment. He needs to set the tone because he is the only one that can create his shot and put the defense off balance. If he settles for jumpers the half court offense stalls unless we are hot from the 3.

In any case the team cannot allow the opponent to determine so easily how they play. Half of the win is forcing your opponent to fight on your terms.

You can't beat better teams playing four on five. Ben simply has to shoot. It has to be nonnegotiable.

We're currently 8-7 against above .500 teams. Our next eight games are Miami, Indiana and Houston
(on the road), OKC and Boston (at home), Dallas and Indiana (on the road) and Brooklyn (at home).

They all now know that when the playoffs come Ben won't shoot, so they can double down on Embiid.
There's only one solution. Ben has to shoot at least giving our bigs a chance to be in position to rebound.

There is literally 0% chance this year that Simmons is going to shoot good enough that he will force opponents to guard him. And team has issues even when Simmons is not playing.

I'm not referring only to 3-point shots, even a majority 3-point shots. When he has an open look from
12 feet, 15 feet or 20 feet, he has take it. Brown has to call his number. What Brown is currently doing
by letting Ben go Markelle Fultz on us is damaging the team. Ben got his payday. Now get withthe program.

Let me add: If his teammates know he's going to shoot, they can position themselves for a rebound or
putback. Embiid was 2 for 8 from the 3-point line last night before the final minute. He's shooting .330
this year, .320 career.

[Stanford]

. That fighting for deep positioning and low post stuff is exhausting.

Don't seem to remember Kareem, Hakeem, etc. needing to fight near that much for all those efficient shots near the rim. Maybe they ran plays or something.

Is that true or are you just making an assertion?

[Kolkmania]

Don't seem to remember Kareem, Hakeem, etc. needing to fight near that much for all those efficient shots near the rim. Maybe they ran plays or something.

Is that true or are you just making an assertion?

Sixers also run various plays (cross screens, post up after DHO, etc) to get Embiid in a good position. It's just really hard in the modern NBA to use your physical advantage.
Nearly every initiation by Embiid is punished with a foul. It's silly, but it is the truth.

I like using post ups as a passing hub, but as a main scoring option it is too flawed in the modern NBA. It drains energy, it is stationary, turnover-prone and turnaround jumpers are a terrible shot from an efficiency standpoint.

[Kobblehead]

Don't seem to remember Kareem, Hakeem, etc. needing to fight near that much for all those efficient shots near the rim. Maybe they ran plays or something.

Or it's just an evolution of the bigman.

All the modern hall of fame talent bigs face up and shoot jumpers. It's been like that for a few decades now.

[Kova]

Also Mike Scott. Dude, man up. You are a useless corpse when not shooting/hitting threes.

Agreed its been a scary trend for Mike Scott who's been useless in roughly half the games he's played in. I'm at the point where I'd rather pickup a guy like Jeff Green and use Scott's contract to pursue trade opportunities.

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True that. Scott is a streaky shooter, so Green is definitely a guy that can also make a 3, but also make plays off the dribble. And more athletic still.

[DaSixers]

Alot of you are assuming we will win in 1st round from talent alone. You realize we can sasily be 6th seed and hell, brooklyn will get kyrie and levert back soon and are only 5 games back. A ton of losses are coming with our upcoming schedule.

We could be the 6th or even 7th seed come playoff time. A few have said they arent worried because it was clear we didnt try.. thats THE PROBLEM.

Why are we making our road to the finals the haddest possible? Talking about embiid getting to the playoffs healthy but how healthy is he gona stay having to play tough 7 game series vs good teams in the 1st round?

Even with embiid playing meh.. thats not an excuse for the other guys. Look how many mins our starting 5 played last night to still lose

Its an absolute abomination of a bball team

[Mik317]

nothing matters until the playoffs. The bucks game proved it. This team will sleepwalk through the season and try to go all in come playoffs.

not sure it will work but that seems to be the plan.

so getting all bent out of shape over dumb losses is a waste of time.

I suggest people take nights off too or else you are going to be just as burnt out lol

[Kobblehead]

I would like the Sixers to take the regular season a little more serious so we get a higher seed than the Celtics and Pacers for a 2nd round matchup. I don't think we can beat either of those teams so we're going to need the court advantage to help tip the balance.

I'm not worried about the Bucks. Let them have the 1 seed.

[NoDopeOnSundays]

Embiid played bad, settling for jumpers all game, which is the reason for his low efficiency.

The team desperately needs some perimeter shot creation and a more structured offense in general.

Embiid needs to set the tone, get deeper position and stop settling for jumpers.

There are certain teams Embiid will have trouble getting in the paint against because of matchups. If you look closely at the Magics roster they present similar matchup problems the Raptors gave the Sixers last year, two big forwards that are both athletic and strong enough to guard Simmons while also being able to provide help defense on Embiid as a result of Ben's lack of shot. Isaac is one of the best defensive players in the league and him being on Simmons allows him to disrupt a lot of what the Sixers do, whether its early transition, Simmons trying to attack off the dribble or posting up Embiid. Gordon can more than hold his own vs Simmons and seems to take matchups with Ben like they're his championship, anytime I see him playing well it's vs the Sixers ( or Knicks )


Just saying Embiid needs to stop settling for jumpers ignores the fact there are some teams that can matchup with the Sixers size. The Clippers and Lakers will present a similar problem as well, mainly because of Simmons not being able to space the floor vs teams with multiple forwards that can defend. Worst case scenario for the Sixers will be Anthony Davis guarding Simmons, if they do that I expect that game to be horrific offensively for the Sixers. Any team with 2 forwards that can legitimately guard 1-4 and a big center will be a problem for the Sixers, it's a small list but there are a couple.

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Isaak is a good defender but other than that they are not particularly big nor good defenders. If that's what it takes to turn the team into jump shooters then the team might not go very far in the postseason. Getting into a shooting contest when you have Simmons, Embiid and Horford in your starting lineup is not very wise nor very sustainable, and if the teams can force us to abandon our gameplan so easily thats a real issue. We lost to the Magic while shooting 34.5% from 3, for every game like the Bucks, shooting wise, there will be many more like against Orlando and there will be some even worse.

Part of it is of course roster construction, because packing the paint works against most Sixers starters, but part of it is Embiid not getting deeper position and the team lacking a more structured offense where everyone knows his role and where he should be.

Their forwards are big/long, athletic and defensively versatile, Gordon is a capable defender when he puts his mind to it and has the size to switch onto everyone but Embiid. The paint is clogged against a team like the Magic because Isaac is on Simmons, that has a trickle down affect on everything, and Embiid getting deeper post position is difficult when the lane is so crowded & Isaac is able to bring help defense.

I don't even think it's roster construction, it's Simmons unwillingness to space to the corner and how that impacts other players on the floor. They can beat a lot of teams because of their size, but on the nights where the size can be neutralized you see the warts in Simmons game pop up. This is why I think the Sixers are a bad matchup for the Bucks, because Giannis can only guard Simmons or Horford, they don't have the other forward that can do it.

[NoDopeOnSundays]

Embiid played bad, settling for jumpers all game, which is the reason for his low efficiency.

The team desperately needs some perimeter shot creation and a more structured offense in general.

Embiid needs to set the tone, get deeper position and stop settling for jumpers.

There are certain teams Embiid will have trouble getting in the paint against because of matchups. If you look closely at the Magics roster they present similar matchup problems the Raptors gave the Sixers last year, two big forwards that are both athletic and strong enough to guard Simmons while also being able to provide help defense on Embiid as a result of Ben's lack of shot. Isaac is one of the best defensive players in the league and him being on Simmons allows him to disrupt a lot of what the Sixers do, whether its early transition, Simmons trying to attack off the dribble or posting up Embiid. Gordon can more than hold his own vs Simmons and seems to take matchups with Ben like they're his championship, anytime I see him playing well it's vs the Sixers ( or Knicks )


Just saying Embiid needs to stop settling for jumpers ignores the fact there are some teams that can matchup with the Sixers size. The Clippers and Lakers will present a similar problem as well, mainly because of Simmons not being able to space the floor vs teams with multiple forwards that can defend. Worst case scenario for the Sixers will be Anthony Davis guarding Simmons, if they do that I expect that game to be horrific offensively for the Sixers. Any team with 2 forwards that can legitimately guard 1-4 and a big center will be a problem for the Sixers, it's a small list but there are a couple.

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The flip side is they will be ugly offensive game from the lakers having to play McGee/Howard more minutes than usual vs the sixers. Lakers cannot go small and have Davis guarding embiid especially early. Davis cannot handle a fresh embiid. He has success guarding a fatigue embiid in the 4th quarter.

If the Lakers guard Simmons like they did last year it'll be a short series and very embarrassing for Simmons, the amount of space he was given by LeBron was just insulting, and they can do the same thing with Davis on him which would be even worse for the Sixers offense as Davis can cover more ground defensively. The Lakers generally don't go small, they've been playing big most of the year, and with their roster they can put LeBron on Horford, Davis on Simmons, McGee/Howard on Embiid, that is a nightmare situation because of how disruptive Davis would be on defense. I doubt they do it in the regular season, but any good coach would have Davis on Simmons in a series.

[DaSixers]

I dont see any way we are anything better than 4 seed come playoffs. Boston simply blows out every team worse than them, as does milwaukee. Miami puts max effort out every game with jimmy getting the best of every player on that team, and if they make a play for jrue which with all their depth and young players will be easy for them to do, we aint passing them. Toronto is injured alot because their coach is running them into the ground for wins, so i can see us ahead of them, but indiana is also a max effort team who gets olidipo back soon, i can easily see us not even having home court in 1st round

All that with a luxury tax level team and most talent stacked starting 5 in the nba

That is just such insane failure

[VDT]

There are certain teams Embiid will have trouble getting in the paint against because of matchups. If you look closely at the Magics roster they present similar matchup problems the Raptors gave the Sixers last year, two big forwards that are both athletic and strong enough to guard Simmons while also being able to provide help defense on Embiid as a result of Ben's lack of shot. Isaac is one of the best defensive players in the league and him being on Simmons allows him to disrupt a lot of what the Sixers do, whether its early transition, Simmons trying to attack off the dribble or posting up Embiid. Gordon can more than hold his own vs Simmons and seems to take matchups with Ben like they're his championship, anytime I see him playing well it's vs the Sixers ( or Knicks )


Just saying Embiid needs to stop settling for jumpers ignores the fact there are some teams that can matchup with the Sixers size. The Clippers and Lakers will present a similar problem as well, mainly because of Simmons not being able to space the floor vs teams with multiple forwards that can defend. Worst case scenario for the Sixers will be Anthony Davis guarding Simmons, if they do that I expect that game to be horrific offensively for the Sixers. Any team with 2 forwards that can legitimately guard 1-4 and a big center will be a problem for the Sixers, it's a small list but there are a couple.

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Isaak is a good defender but other than that they are not particularly big nor good defenders. If that's what it takes to turn the team into jump shooters then the team might not go very far in the postseason. Getting into a shooting contest when you have Simmons, Embiid and Horford in your starting lineup is not very wise nor very sustainable, and if the teams can force us to abandon our gameplan so easily thats a real issue. We lost to the Magic while shooting 34.5% from 3, for every game like the Bucks, shooting wise, there will be many more like against Orlando and there will be some even worse.

Part of it is of course roster construction, because packing the paint works against most Sixers starters, but part of it is Embiid not getting deeper position and the team lacking a more structured offense where everyone knows his role and where he should be.

Their forwards are big/long, athletic and defensively versatile, Gordon is a capable defender when he puts his mind to it and has the size to switch onto everyone but Embiid. The paint is clogged against a team like the Magic because Isaac is on Simmons, that has a trickle down affect on everything, and Embiid getting deeper post position is difficult when the lane is so crowded & Isaac is able to bring help defense.

I don't even think it's roster construction, it's Simmons unwillingness to space to the corner and how that impacts other players on the floor. They can beat a lot of teams because of their size, but on the nights where the size can be neutralized you see the warts in Simmons game pop up. This is why I think the Sixers are a bad matchup for the Bucks, because Giannis can only guard Simmons or Horford, they don't have the other forward that can do it.

Gordon is 6'8", he is not particularly tall for a small forward. Vucevic is not a good defender and is a soft player. If the Magic can force the Sixers to become a jump shooting team then most playoff teams can also do that, which is obviously an issue.

It is also hard for the team to get easy wins against worse teams because there is no system in place like the Bucks have nor is there a playmaker that is the system like Lebron. This also makes it hard to improve with time.

[Kobblehead]

Man, Orlando's defense is going to be so nasty in the future with Fultz, Okeke, Gordon and Isaac.

[Ferry Avenue]

I would like the Sixers to take the regular season a little more serious so we get a higher seed than the Celtics and Pacers for a 2nd round matchup. I don't think we can beat either of those teams so we're going to need the court advantage to help tip the balance.

I'm not worried about the Bucks. Let them have the 1 seed.

They can't do that because playing at that level would require Embiid to bring it on a nightly basis and set the tone for the team's level of effort and intensity, and he isn't capable of that. That's one of the problems with building a team around a traditional center in today's NBA.

This is why keeping Jimmy Butler was so important, because he would've supplied that sort of leadership when Embiid couldn't. As it stands now, no one else on the team is capable of that.

This team is basically just waiting to arrive in the playoffs and get beaten more soundly by a team as driven as the Raptors were last year, because Embiid will be his customary sluggish self for some of the games, and nobody like Butler will exist to pick up the slack in terms of team leadership.