Played at an advanced time, the match started timidly, with Sixers who rely mainly on Joel Embiidwhile the Suns are mainly based on Kevin Durant and Eric Gordon, without Devin Booker or Bradley Beal. As is often the case in these early afternoon matches, the skills are not well behaved and ball losses accumulate very quickly, while the spectacle is not really there (25-24).
Offensively, it’s quite poor on the side of Phoenix without Kevin Durant and Philadelphia takes the opportunity to break away, thanks to the contribution of Tobias Harris and especially Kelly Oubre. “KD” tries to bring his people back into contact, but he is too lonely because his teammates are just too clumsy. With an aggressive and efficient Harris/Oubre Jr. duo playing fast, Philly logically stays on course, even if the gap is not huge at the break (52-45).
The Sixers don’t even force
Without Jusuf Nurkic to restart the half, Joel Embiid inevitably presses the accelerator against poor Drew Eubanks, incapable of keeping up with the comparison in defense. The gap climbs to around fifteen units, but the Sixers sabotage themselves again with their turnovers and the Suns, in the wake of a great Kevin Durant, did not ask for that much to come back – again – to the score , while they seem really limited collectively (80-75).
The last quarter will nevertheless be one-sided, since Philadelphia will quietly take the measure of Phoenix and, without Joel Embiid, resting on the bench. I have to say that Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris, but also Furkan Korkmaz and Paul Reed, do an excellent job and Kevin Durant’s free throws do nothing: it’s a new defeat for the Arizona franchise, its third in a row, while Philly won a fourth victory in a row (112-100).
TO REMEMBER
– Philadelphia took its time. Superior to the Suns collectively, the Sixers nevertheless had to wait until the last act to validate their success, even though Joel Embiid was resting (he ultimately never returned to the game). Previously, Nick Nurse’s men left those of Frank Vogel alive for a long time, notably because of their losses of the ball and a poor address. But once they corrected these problems, in the second and fourth quarters, we quickly noticed that there was too much gap between these two teams, on a collective level.
TOP/FLOP
✅ Joel Embiid’s “supporting cast”. In addition to the reigning MVP, faithful to his statistical standards and untenable after returning from the locker room, the Sixers were able to count on the valuable contributions of Tyrese Maxey, new right arm of “JoJo” and brilliant in the last act, but also Tobias Harris and Kelly Oubre Jr, decisive in the first half. Shock quartet for Philly. The only team that has four players who average 20 points or more.
⛔️ The “supporting cast” of Kevin Durant. Unlike Joel Embiid, “KD” was unable to rely on very effective and influential lieutenants and, without Devin Booker or Bradley Beal, this proves problematic. Apart from the 2014 MVP (9/20), the other Suns players thus accumulated an ugly… 23/69 shooting (i.e. 33% success rate). Quickly the return of the Booker/Beal duo…
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
