76ers: Doc Rivers Reflects on Impact of Early Season Injuries
Over the course of the season, the injury bug has never strayed too far from the Philadelphia 76ers, with no clear preference for reserve players or starters.
This was perhaps never more evident than at the beginning of the season when both James Harden and Tyrese Maxey were sidelined with month-long injuries, during a time period in which Joel Embiid would also sit out for multiple games.
While some coaches may have seen this stretch as a period of doubt, 76ers' head coach Doc Rivers saw it as an opportunity to strengthen his bench players, knowing that there were going to be more injuries to come throughout the season, as De'Anthony Melton, Shake Milton, and Montrezl Harrel, amongst others, received more playing time.
These experiences would pay off as they helped strengthen Philadelphia's resilience, knowing that regardless of who is out, there is still a chance to win. The Sixers' undermanned win against the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night would be an excellent example of this mentality.
Hours before tip-off Joel Embiid and James Harden were ruled out with injury management/recovery, but this wouldn't hold Philadelphia back, according to Rivers.
"Earlier in the year, we lose this, but now because we've played with guys out, everyone was ready." explained Rivers, "We didn't come into the game thinking we had 70 points out, we came in thinking that we were going to find a way to win and our guys did that."
In the process of upsetting a healthy Kings lineup, 129-127, four players who are usually reserve players put up double-digit numbers, with Harrell, Maxey, Milton, and Georges Niang all scoring a minimum of 15 points.
With their win on Saturday, Philadelphia moves to sole possession of the second seed in the Eastern Conference ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets, sitting five games behind the Boston Celtics.
Declan Harris contributes to All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him on Twitter: @DecIanH.
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