Game 71: 76ers vs Bulls - Mar 20th 7:00pm ET

the_process · Post #121 » by **the_process** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 2:20 pm

So Glenn is well on his way to grinding the entire team to dust I see.

Only Thibs is worse I think.

Jailblazers7 · Post #122 » by **Jailblazers7** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 3:36 pm

I don’t worry too much about Harden’s minutes generally because his game is low stress. He’s not doing a ton of iso anymore, he’s not moving off ball, and he’s definitely not expending energy on defense. His minutes are far different than a player like Steph who is in constant motion.

This foot issue has been lingering all year tho so that gives me some concern.

mjkvol · Post #123 » by **mjkvol** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:45 pm

Jailblazers7 wrote:
This foot issue has been lingering all year tho so that gives me some concern.

If he has any injury issue his ass should be shut down as much as is needed to get him right for the playoffs.

I'm sorry, but this obsession on getting the #2 seed and pushing the veteran players is utter insanity. How many f***king times does this team have to physically fall apart in the post season before that finally becomes crystal clear?

HardenGoat · Post #124 » by **HardenGoat** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:54 pm

mjkvol wrote:
Jailblazers7 wrote:
This foot issue has been lingering all year tho so that gives me some concern.

If he has any injury issue his ass should be shut down as much as is needed to get him right for the playoffs.

I'm sorry, but this obsession on getting the #2 seed and pushing the veteran players is utter insanity. How many f***king times does this team have to physically fall apart in the post season before that finally becomes crystal clear?

I believe they were gunning for the one seed. That was what was in play especially having another game left against the Bucks. This loss pretty much killed that opportunity.

the_process · Post #125 » by **the_process** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 6:14 pm

HardenGoat wrote:
mjkvol wrote:
Jailblazers7 wrote:
This foot issue has been lingering all year tho so that gives me some concern.

If he has any injury issue his ass should be shut down as much as is needed to get him right for the playoffs.

I'm sorry, but this obsession on getting the #2 seed and pushing the veteran players is utter insanity. How many f***king times does this team have to physically fall apart in the post season before that finally becomes crystal clear?

I believe they were gunning for the one seed. That was what was in play especially having another game left against the Bucks. This loss pretty much killed that opportunity.

The company line will be it's still possible to get a higher seed so they're gonna push.

IMO the reality is Glenn loves regular season wins to pad his résumé.

mjkvol · Post #126 » by **mjkvol** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 7:02 pm

HardenGoat wrote:
mjkvol wrote:
Jailblazers7 wrote:
This foot issue has been lingering all year tho so that gives me some concern.

If he has any injury issue his ass should be shut down as much as is needed to get him right for the playoffs.

I'm sorry, but this obsession on getting the #2 seed and pushing the veteran players is utter insanity. How many f***king times does this team have to physically fall apart in the post season before that finally becomes crystal clear?

I believe they were gunning for the one seed. That was what was in play especially having another game left against the Bucks. This loss pretty much killed that opportunity.

If one single loss killed the chances then it was a less than remote possibility to begin with, in which case I will reiterate that the whole idea of pushing the guys this hard with the playoffs a couple weeks away is asinine. Was anyone expecting them to win out?

I agree with @the_process - this is as much about Glenn padding his record as anything else, and Embiid's quest for the MVP he'll never be awarded by the scum media as well.

Jay555 · Post #127 » by **Jay555** » Tue Mar 21, 2023 11:27 pm

Regular season means ****. I’d rather play Harden 30 mins a game and have him fresh come playoffs than burning him and Embiid to the ground heading into the playoffs. Guess it’s hard to learn from mistakes.

mjkvol · Post #128 » by **mjkvol** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:33 am

Jay555 wrote:Regular season means ****. I’d rather play Harden 30 mins a game and have him fresh come playoffs than burning him and Embiid to the ground heading into the playoffs. Guess it’s hard to learn from mistakes.

And that includes many here insisting that the extra home game is worth running the team into the ground. We're settled into the three seed - fine, let's get everyone healthy and rested for once headed into the post season.

ExplosionsInDaSky · Post #129 » by **ExplosionsInDaSky** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:47 am

mjkvol wrote:
Jay555 wrote:Regular season means ****. I’d rather play Harden 30 mins a game and have him fresh come playoffs than burning him and Embiid to the ground heading into the playoffs. Guess it’s hard to learn from mistakes.

And that includes many here insisting that the extra home game is worth running the team into the ground. We're settled into the three seed - fine, let's get everyone healthy and rested for once headed into the post season.

Lately I've gone back and forth on the idea of really pushing for the #1 seed and just settling in as the 2/3 seed. I think the latter would be the smarter choice to make here because two years ago we pushed for the #1 seed, we got it, and then got smoked by Atlanta.
After last night, the issue with Harden, Melton holding his hand in pain, Embiid looking gassed, Tucker sitting...These are tell tale signs that we may need to back off and just get ready to give our best fight in the postseason. I know the MVP narrative is there for this team and Embiid, but we should probably rest both him and Harden once we at least have the three seed locked in. Looking at the final 11 games of the season, there is no let up in that schedule. It's all against playoff quality opponents who all have something to play for.
We all want the top seed, but I think the realistic goal should be the maintain that #3 seed and go into the playoffs with a clean bill of health. Not sure Rivers is going to see it that way, but I think we need to settle in to that reality. I know last nights loss is only one loss, but it was against a team that we should have beaten. I don't want to overreact, but I think the loss last night officially excludes us from getting the top spot in the east. Milwaukee is just not going to let up and their schedule is way easier than ours. Doc needs to be smart about this as do our own players. Rest them if necessary.

ProcessDoctor · Post #130 » by **ProcessDoctor** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:54 am

Rest Harden for as long as possible.

mjkvol · Post #131 » by **mjkvol** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:57 am

ExplosionsInDaSky wrote:We all want the top seed, but I think the realistic goal should be the maintain that #3 seed and go into the playoffs with a clean bill of health. Not sure Rivers is going to see it that way, but I think we need to settle in to that reality.

I've been saying all season to forget about seeding and just get to the playoffs sharp, healthy, and rested. Home court advantage? Lose one game at WFA and it's gone. Forget it, just be healthy and rested - this team has proven it can win big games on the road.

Rivers won't take his foot off the gas because he's a charlatan, and the primary reason I can't see us moving any further than usual.

HardenGoat · Post #132 » by **HardenGoat** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 2:53 am

Read on Twitter

/mediaviewer

This appears to be the no call foul that strained his left Achilles.

FlyingArrow · Post #133 » by **FlyingArrow** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 3:19 am

mjkvol wrote:
ExplosionsInDaSky wrote:We all want the top seed, but I think the realistic goal should be the maintain that #3 seed and go into the playoffs with a clean bill of health. Not sure Rivers is going to see it that way, but I think we need to settle in to that reality.

I've been saying all season to forget about seeding and just get to the playoffs sharp, healthy, and rested. Home court advantage? Lose one game at WFA and it's gone. Forget it, just be healthy and rested - this team has proven it can win big games on the road.

Rivers won't take his foot off the gas because he's a charlatan, and the primary reason I can't see us moving any further than usual.

Rivers kept Embiid in a playoff game when we had a 200-point lead, and Embiid's face got broken. That was the whole season and it's all on Rivers.

Jhawk03 · Post #134 » by **Jhawk03** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 9:48 am

FlyingArrow wrote:
mjkvol wrote:
ExplosionsInDaSky wrote:We all want the top seed, but I think the realistic goal should be the maintain that #3 seed and go into the playoffs with a clean bill of health. Not sure Rivers is going to see it that way, but I think we need to settle in to that reality.

I've been saying all season to forget about seeding and just get to the playoffs sharp, healthy, and rested. Home court advantage? Lose one game at WFA and it's gone. Forget it, just be healthy and rested - this team has proven it can win big games on the road.

Rivers won't take his foot off the gas because he's a charlatan, and the primary reason I can't see us moving any further than usual.

Rivers kept Embiid in a playoff game when we had a 200-point lead, and Embiid's face got broken. That was the whole season and it's all on Rivers.

Enough already with tanking for the #3 seed. This team will win in spite of Rivers. Bunch of scared ass losers. Every game from here on out is a playoff warm-up game, just look at Thunder vs Clippers. I suppose OKC should've started tanking three weeks ago vs now being in a position to gain playoff experience for a team that desperately needs it. The same could be said for Memphis a couple years ago. If the goal is to make the playoffs healthy, I mean nm, that's a dumbass goal. **** happens, ask Siakam if he's sorry for the elbow last year. This **** is unbelievable. Let me grab my magic wand and make Sixers the #1 seed with a clean bill of health. :banghead:

Jay555 · Post #135 » by **Jay555** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:11 pm

Did everyone see Paul George get his knee hyperextended when they were playing Thunder? Dude will be out for x amount of weeks now.

Rest Harden and Embiid as much as possible. We need a healthy squad come playoffs. 1 seed without a healthy Harden or Embiid means ****.

Bum Adebayo · Post #136 » by **Bum Adebayo** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:45 pm

Jay555 wrote:Did everyone see Paul George get his knee hyperextended when they were playing Thunder? Dude will be out for x amount of weeks now.

Rest Harden and Embiid as much as possible. We need a healthy squad come playoffs. 1 seed without a healthy Harden or Embiid means ****.

Embiid has a problem with you idea though.

mjkvol · Post #137 » by **mjkvol** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 1:34 pm

Jhawk03 wrote:Enough already with tanking for the #3 seed. This team will win in spite of Rivers. Bunch of scared ass losers. Every game from here on out is a playoff warm-up game, just look at Thunder vs Clippers. I suppose OKC should've started tanking three weeks ago vs now being in a position to gain playoff experience for a team that desperately needs it. The same could be said for Memphis a couple years ago. If the goal is to make the playoffs healthy, I mean nm, that's a dumbass goal. **** happens, ask Siakam if he's sorry for the elbow last year. This **** is unbelievable. Let me grab my magic wand and make Sixers the #1 seed with a clean bill of health.

Your post makes zero sense. You're going to compare young upstart teams like OKC and MEM to a veteran group like the Sixers?

What's so complicated about giving Harden, Embiid, and Tucker days off in the weeks leading up to the post season, not playing them more than 32-34 minutes a night, and especially pulling Harden from a game where he is clearly hurt but instead letting him go 2 OT's while dragging one leg around?

The idea is to be smart with minutes and nights off with a veteran group that has no need to "gain experience", but instead needs to be prepared for a hopefully long, grueling playoff run after a too-long season. It ain't rocket science.

ExplosionsInDaSky · Post #138 » by **ExplosionsInDaSky** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 2:04 pm

The Paul George injury is the first of a few more to come. There will be 2-3 more prominent star players go down with some sort of injury that ruins their teams postseason hopes. I really don't want it to be us, but we also can't play scared. This needs to be a balancing act until the playoffs. Right now, I think Harden should rest for at least tonight. We have a touch b2b this weekend and neither him or Embiid should play tonight.

Embiid P · Post #139 » by **Embiid P** » Wed Mar 22, 2023 4:22 pm

ExplosionsInDaSky wrote:The Paul George injury is the first of a few more to come. There will be 2-3 more prominent star players go down with some sort of injury that ruins their teams postseason hopes. I really don't want it to be us, but we also can't play scared. This needs to be a balancing act until the playoffs. Right now, I think Harden should rest for at least tonight. We have a touch b2b this weekend and neither him or Embiid should play tonight.

It's simple. Play them against good teams while resting them vs. average or below average teams. Given our difficult schedule the next few games, I really thought that they should have sat Embiid in one of the B2Bs vs. Charlotte or Indiana but he gotta chase that MVP and #1 seed I guess.

FlyingArrow · Post #140 » by **FlyingArrow** » Thu Mar 23, 2023 2:16 am

Embiid P wrote:
ExplosionsInDaSky wrote:The Paul George injury is the first of a few more to come. There will be 2-3 more prominent star players go down with some sort of injury that ruins their teams postseason hopes. I really don't want it to be us, but we also can't play scared. This needs to be a balancing act until the playoffs. Right now, I think Harden should rest for at least tonight. We have a touch b2b this weekend and neither him or Embiid should play tonight.

It's simple. Play them against good teams while resting them vs. average or below average teams. Given our difficult schedule the next few games, I really thought that they should have sat Embiid in one of the B2Bs vs. Charlotte or Indiana but he gotta chase that MVP and #1 seed I guess.

There's a case to be made for never playing star players on back to backs. There are significantly more injuries on the second night of back-to-backs.