Take a look at the NBA standings and you’ll see the Sixers sitting solely atop the Eastern Conference at 16-6 and it’s within the realm of possibilities that the team is actually better than its record.
Philadelphia has dealt with injuries and a stretch of COVID-19 issues. Though when their starters play together, they’ve dominated. The franchise is 12-0 this season with the Ben Simmons–Seth Curry–Danny Green–Tobias Harris–Joel Embiid starting lineup. The defense, in particular, has looked championship caliber for stretches with Wednesday night against the Hornets (Charlotte only mustered 13 first-quarter points) showcasing their potential.
“I think with how active we were and how many deflections we got, it was definitely a glimpse of how good we can potentially be,” Danny Green told FortyEightMinutes and other reporters post game. “I think the tough part is doing it for 48 minutes.”
Philadelphia just closed out their road trip, going 3-0, and before they get to two straight home games against quality opponents (Portland on Thursday, Brooklyn on Saturday), let’s take a look at some notes out of Philadelphia:
- Harris said he has long wanted to incorporate the Eurostep into his game and he brought it out against the Hornets. “Oh s—, I did that,” Harris told reporters after the contest, explaining that he was sort of in awe at his ability to do so.
- Doc Rivers was recently named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for January and Embiid was named the conference’s player of the month. Rivers isn’t resting on the early-season laurels. “Really, as a whole team we’ve just got to keep getting better,” Rivers said during a recent zoom call ith reporters. “It’s really nice, Joel winning Player of the Month, but I don’t think that’s why we started the season or what he wanted. He wants more. The better you play as a group, the more those things come to you. But that shouldn’t be a reason not to keep wanting to improve.”
- The Sixers will face the Blazers tonight without Damian Lillard, as the point guard is out with an abdominal strain. Derrick Jones Jr. (left foot sprain), Nassir Little (left knee), CJ McCollum (left midfoot fracture), C Jusuf Nurkic (right wrist), and Zach Collins (left ankle) are all also out.
