Player Observations After Sixers Fall Way Short in Memphis
The Philadelphia 76ers picked up their most impressive win of the 2021-2022 NBA season on Saturday night. As the Sixers hosted the NBA's top team, the Golden State Warriors, they wanted to ensure that Steph Curry doesn't break Ray Allen's three-point shooting record on their own court.
As the Sixers held Curry to just three threes, they managed to keep the Warriors star from going off and picking up a win in South Philly. Following their big victory, the Sixers hit the road for a one-game trip to face the Memphis Grizzlies.
Heading into Monday night's game, the Sixers hadn't won a game in Memphis since 2012. A half an hour before tip-off, the 76ers found out it was going to be difficult to break that streak as two starters, Seth Curry and Joel Embiid were ruled out late by the Sixers.
From the gate, it was clear the Sixers simply didn't have it on Monday. After getting outscored 68-56 in the first half, Philly found themselves in a hole heading into the third quarter. Unfortunately, the deficit was too steep for the Sixers to climb out of as they were outscored by 13 before heading into the fourth quarter.
By the time the final quarter rolled around, it was clear the Sixers wouldn't make it out of Memphis with a win. When the game clock expired, the Sixers wrapped up the game with a 126-91 loss. Now, let's observe the individual performances from the Sixers' side.
The Starters
Coming off of his most impressive game of the season after locking up Steph Curry, Thybulle didn't follow up with a repeat performance on Monday. While he collected two steals on defense and hit one of his two three-point attempts, there wasn't really much else Thybulle could do for the Sixers.
Oftentimes, Tobias Harris catches a lot of heat for underperforming based on how much he makes. Sometimes, fans are right to be upset. Other times, they are overreacting. Monday night was one of those performances the criticism is justified. In a game with two starters out, Harris is expected to come alive and lead the Sixers. However, his 12 points off of 12 shots didn't do much for Philly.
Andre Drummond
In a rather ugly matchup overall, Drummond was one of the better players on the floor as he replaced Joel Embiid for the night. In 20 minutes, he scored six points, collected nine rebounds, and blocked three shots. He also picked up three assists with a highlight pass. While Drummond is definitely best suited in a backup role with limited minutes, he played his part on Monday.
When Seth Curry was ruled out, the Sixers inserted Korkmaz into the starting lineup, which was a rather shocking move for Doc Rivers. For over a month now, Korkmaz has been in a massive shooting slump. Maybe Rivers wanted to see if he could shoot his way out of it while surrounded by starters in Memphis. Korkmaz finished the night with ten points off of 11 shots. He went 0-3 from beyond the arc. If that was truly the plan, it didn't work that well.
With the offense running through Maxey, the second-year guard looked very solid in Memphis. As he led the Sixers with 17 shots, Maxey scored a team-high of 23 points in 30 minutes. He also collected seven assists on the offensive end. As long as Embiid's healthy, the Sixers' offense will continue to run through him. But the 76ers need to find ways to get Maxey more involved even when the big man's on the floor.
The Bench
For the fourth time this season, Danny Green scored zero points for the Sixers. Once again, he had a forgettable night.
The young veteran has been one of the Sixers' most consistent players this year. He was by far one of the best players coming off the bench in Memphis. Checking in for a little under 30 minutes, Milton wrapped up his night by shooting 4-9 from the field for 12 points.
With a couple of guys out, Georges Niang picked up more minutes and finished the night with 26 total. During his time on the floor, he chucked up seven shots and scored six points. Typically, Niang's a reliable three-point shooter but his 0-3 from beyond the arc didn't help the Sixers as they shot just 18-percent from deep overall on Monday night.
Typically, Joe doesn't pick up minutes when the team is healthy but he benefitted from two guys being out. In 15 minutes, Joe attempted five shots, two of which were from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, he didn't make a strong case for gaining future minutes as he drained just one shot from the field.
Considering he's a rookie, expectations remain low for Bassey when he plays. Fortunately for the Sixers, he continues to raise the bar for himself. In 22 minutes on the floor, Bassey drained 60-percent of his shots for 13 points. He notched himself a double-double by grabbing ten rebounds. While a double-double is impressive, the Sixers rookie flashed brilliance on defense by collecting four blocks. In an ugly game, Bassey made the most out of his minutes -- that's for sure.
