New Year, New Sixers?
Happy New Year, Everybody.
Things are finally starting to look brighter around the time of the Sixers’ holiday.
With the Eagles‘ recent play, the Sixers have taken a major backseat in Philly. Quietly, the Sixers have won eight of their last ten games.
The Big 3 have finally gotten some playing time, and some role players have stepped up to help the team improve to 11th in the East.
Joel Embiid Returning to Form
In this last stretch of games, Embiid has averaged 26.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.0 assists. These aren’t the numbers we’re accustomed to, but they’re much better than what he started the season with. We don’t need him to do anything more than this anyway.
While doing less, Embiid still managed to win games with his presence. The Paul George signing came with the hope that Embiid would do less to stay healthy throughout the season. With these numbers, he can reserve more energy and avoid injury while still contributing heavily to this team’s success.
His late-play style also looks a lot less urgent. In past years, Embiid has pretty much run every offensive possession while he’s on the floor, but now, with the contributions of many players, he can work off the ball a lot more and slow down his game. This slight style change can keep Embiid off the ground more and provide him with easier buckets.
Maxey Playing Better With Embiid Back
PHOTO: Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
During the season, Maxey averaged 42.3% FG and 34.2% 3FG, both down from last year. Much of this concerns his star Center missing so many games this year.
Over the last ten games, Maxey started to find his groove with Embiid returning. He put up similar numbers but with higher efficiency. He raised his FG% to 44.4 and his 3-point percentage to 39.2%. This efficiency boost helps the Sixers get more out of their offensive possessions.
His shot selection has helped him a lot with this boost. With more talent around him, he has forced fewer bad shots and spaced the floor well for himself and his teammates.
Not to mention, he’s second in the league in steals this year. Every year, Maxey has improved, and this year, his dedication to the game has shown off in the defensive department. He continues to grow in understanding the game in every season of his career.
George’s Numbers Aren’t Pretty, But He Contributes
His 15.5 PPG is a significant drop off from last year’s 22.6 PPG, with only 1.3 APG to make up for it. We, as fans, expected more from him when he signed his big contract this past offseason. His points should certainly be higher than 15.5, but his reputation alone seems to help this Sixers team. None of that can show up on the stat sheet, but he often creates a lot of gravity around himself on the court, which provides open teammates with shots.
Though his offensive contributions aren’t as much as we hoped, his defense is as advertised. His 2 steals a game would tie him with Maxey for the 2nd place steals average in the league. His veteran savvy puts him in the right place at the right time on defense. He knows where the ball is going before the offense throws it. He and Maxey have caused a lot of turnovers together this year.
Role Players Pivotal to Success
Many Sixers players have stepped up off the bench to help this team compete with the star players. Players like KJ Martin, Jared McCain, Ricky Council, etc., have significantly contributed to this team. Above all, though, I’ve been extremely impressed with Guerschon Yabusele.
Yabusele has been consistent with this team from the start of the season. He has played a lot of minutes due to injuries from the centers on this team, and he has made the best of his opportunities. Even though he signed as a PF, he has demonstrated value in the center position as well based on necessity. He always gives heart and hustles – one thing this team has lacked in the past. Without him, this season may have started off even a little worse than before.
11th Place isn’t that Bad When You Think About It
Yeah, okay. We didn’t expect to finish 11th in the season, but given the circumstances, it’s not the worst place we could be.
With the Play-In games, 10th place also gets into the playoffs. It would be great to avoid these games, but in the worst-case scenario, there’s still a chance in the playoffs.
At 13-17, the Sixers are only three games out of the sixth seed, which would avoid the play-in situation.
With such a bad Eastern Conference, the Sixers can easily work their way back into playoff contention.
PHOTO: Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
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Categorized:Sixers