Josh Richardson Admits 76ers Need to be More Vocal During NBA Playoffs

There were two sides to the 2019-2020 Philadelphia 76ers. At home, the Sixers held the NBA's best record, crushing some of the league's most dominant teams. On the road, however, they struggled to get out of their own way. With under ten wins away from South Philly, the Sixers knew they weren't the same team on the road.

And at a point, the first-year Sixer Josh Richardson called the team out on it. Although he didn't want to repeat his speech then, which helped galvanize the locker room, Richardson's attempt to step into a leadership role was a successful one temporarily.

Before the NBA went on a suspension, the Sixers still had issues on the road. And if you asked Brett Brown, or any of the players on board why it's so difficult for them to win on the road, nobody ever had an answer.

On Wednesday, though, Josh Richardson revealed that a lack of on-court communication could be a significant factor as to why the Sixers struggled away from home this season. And as the team will wrap up the regular season and the NBA Playoffs in Orlando with a fan-less setting, Richardson understands the 76ers will have form better communication in order to make a title run.

"I think the first half of the year was pretty good, but it could've gone a lot better," Richardson admitted. "I think our team needs to be a little bit more vocal going forward. I think that was some of our issues on the road throughout the season. With new teams, it's kind of different. So it is kind of different restarting again because we've been away for so long we might have to learn all of that again. Consistency will be a big thing going forward."

At this point, Richardson and the Sixers haven't had the opportunity to begin practicing wholly as a team yet. But starting this month, the 76ers will start ramping up training camp 2.0 in the NBA's bubble down in Orlando.

By August 1st, the Sixers will begin the final eight-game stretch of the regular season before heading off into the playoffs. By then, Richardson will be hopeful the Sixers will be ready to keep the ball rolling in the right direction after a shaky start to the year.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_