Kendrick Perkins Thinks Sixers Should Be Panicking In Matchup vs. Hawks

Sunday's game one between the Sixers and Hawks did not go the way anyone expected. After a scorching hot start, Atlanta broke out to a lead that got as high as 26.

They went on to survive a late surge from the Sixers to steal game one. Not only did the Hawks strike first in the series, but they upset one of the league's best home teams.

The outcome of this game was a topic on ESPN's "The Jump" on Monday afternoon. It was there that analyst and former player Kendrick Perkins said the Sixers should begin to panic.

"It's time to panic. Better yet, call the paramedics because it's a problem," said Perkins.

Perkins gave two reasons as to why the Sixers should be entering panic mode. Those were not having an answer for Trae Young and the health of Joel Embiid.

"Going deeper into this series, we don't know how Embiid is going to feel after each game. So right now, if I'm the 76ers, I'm panicking. Because they have no answer for Trae Young, and he lives for this moment," Perkins said Monday.

While Embiid's health is certainly going to be the biggest storyline as this series goes on. As far as containing Young goes, the Sixers have more than enough personnel to defend the All-Star guard.

The Sixers did a much better job defending Young in the second half of game one compared to the first half. When Doc Rivers began to mix up the coverages thrown at Young, the defense was able to get the ball out of his hands more frequently.

Along with mixing up coverages, Rivers is sure to use multiple defenders as well. Ben Simmons and Matisse Thybulle should see more time on Young as we get deeper into this second-round matchup.

Adjustments certainly need to be made after game one, but the Sixers do not need to approach panic mode yet. They turned the ball over 19 times, missed 11 free throws, and still only lost by four points.

The Sixers now find themselves in an uphill battle as they try to regain homecourt advantage in this series. The first order of business is taking care of business in Game 2 and heading to Atlanta with momentum.

Kevin McCormick covers the Philadelphia 76ers for South Jersey's 97.3 ESPN and Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @KevinMcCNBA.