While the Sixers evolved without Joel Embiid, James Harden and Tyrese Maxey, the Nets lost 115-106 in Philadelphia! For his great return to the land of his first exploits, Ben Simmons signs a double-double, but his team has shown sufficiency, and they have been punished!
However, everything had started well for the Nets with an 8-2 to attack the game, and Simmons, after two shots, can even afford to shrug his shoulders… But the rest will be awful. Simply because the Nets did not want to defend, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in the lead. They leave too much space for shooters, and the Sixers sign a 5 of 8 from afar in the first quarter to take control (33-27).
Reed’s activity
After Montrezl Harrell, it’s Paul Reed who does damage under the boards, and only Seth Curry and Patty Mills show envy in the Nets camp. The 3-point festival continues at the Sixers, and it’s De’Anthony Melton who gets started. At the break, the Sixers are still ahead: 63-57.
We tell ourselves that Jacque Vaughn will find the words to shake up his players, and Kyrie Irving is finally waking up. As Tobias Harris injures his ankle, the Nets have a boulevard to pick up the score and pass. But at the start of the last quarter, Philly is still in the lead (85-82), and Harris is back! As at the start of the 2nd quarter, it was Reed who made the difference. He dominates the offensive rebound, covers Curry, and under his leadership, Philly stands out (96-87). It was Harris who took over, and the Sixers raced to victory against a truly disappointing Nets from start to finish.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– Ben Simmons obviously booed. It was with a bronca that the public of the Sixers welcomed Ben Simmons. We expected it, but it was very, very noisy! During the match, the whistles continued, and even the insults. After the match, Simmons would explain that he expected it to be ” more noisy“.
– The “defense” of the Nets. Fortunately, the Sixers were deprived of their three best scorers because Brooklyn could have left with a big suitcase. The Nets have never shown any desire on defense, and that’s really worrying. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant didn’t help on defense away from the ball, they didn’t challenge movement, and they were behind on movement.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ De’Anthony Melton. He is so close to the starters that when he starts a match, he plays like a starter! A game of mastery with defence, skill and leadership. It’s him who brings his team into the game, and his confidence is contagious.
✅ Paul Reed. A double-double off the bench for the usual lining of Joel Embiid. It was he, at the start of the 4th quarter, who made the difference with his counter on Curry, a tap or even an interception.
✅ George Niang. The Sixers shooter did not miss the target with 16 points in 18 minutes with a nice 4 of 5 from 3-pointers.
✅ Ben Simmons. Kudos to him for keeping his head held high the whole game despite the whistles and insults. He still signs a full game with 11 points, 11 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. But some of his teammates didn’t feel like defending…
⛔ Kyrie Irving. Certainly, he scores 23 points and he is skilful near the circle… But his defense is catastrophic, and his selection of 3-point shots is questionable.
THE FOLLOWING
Philadelphia (9-8) : trip to Charlotte tonight, still without its best players.
Brooklyn (8-10) : visit of the Raptors tonight.
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