Nick Nurse Praises Jaden Springer's Defensive Output vs. Mavericks
On Monday night, the Philadelphia 76ers took on the Dallas Mavericks, with the aim of ending their recent rough patch of games, which includes dropping their previous match against the Brooklyn Nets.
The Sixers came out the gates storming, scoring 57 points in the first half, with Tobias Harris and Kelly Oubre Jr carrying a large part of the scoring, combining for 22 points across the opening two quarters.
Yet, there was another element to the game which helped the Sixers come out on top during the opening two quarters, which was the defensive pressure applied by Jaden Springer.
Against the Mavericks, Springer recorded three steals, ripping the likes of All-Star starter Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber, and Grant Williams.
This isn't to forget the efforts Springer put up against the Golden State Warriors last week, where he stripped the ball on four separate occasions.
Given this, following the Sixers' loss, Nick Nurse praised the 21-year-old's defensive acumen, stating that he's able to do it against anyone.
"I've been saying that's his number one skill, he can go out there and mix it up with anybody," said Nurse.
The Sixers' head coach was quick to highlight Springer's defensive prowess against the Mavericks, while then pivoting to his flexibility on the defensive end, having done it in two different styles throughout the past week, pointing out his work in the match against the Utah Jazz earlier on in the month.
"It's good to see him making plays, like tonight he really made plays, in Utah he played great too, he was just containing everything, side-to-side, side-to-side, tonight he made them turn it over some, he forced some really tough shots," said Nurse, "He does a really good skill at that, it's important."
While his defensive stat line against the Jazz wasn't the most impressive, only recording a single steal, it's clear that Nurse has liked what he has seen, as Springer has become a consistent replacement for the injured De'Anthony Melton.
