Nick Nurse Wasn’t Entirely Impressed With 76ers’ Showing vs. Wizards

The Philadelphia 76ers collected another notable victory on Monday night against the Washington Wizards. In a matchup where they scored nearly 150 points as a collective, the Sixers dominated the struggling Wizards, reaching their expectations for the night.

There were certainly some factors that head coach Nick Nurse liked and highlighted after the game, notably the debut of Nic Batum and the offensive masterclass put on by Joel Embiid.

However, the performance wasn’t entirely impressive in the eyes of Nurse.

“I like to think that we play aggressively, that when we get the ball, we’re looking for opportunities early, and we’re trying to attack the paint, and we’re doing those things quickly,” Nurse told reporters after Monday’s game. "At the [defensive] end, that we’re up guarding. There wasn’t a whole lot of defense out there tonight by either team. So, I’m not going to say I was impressed by that tonight.”

The Sixers scored a lot on Monday — but they also gave up a lot of points in return.

This season, the Sixers are finding a lot of success on defense. Six games into the year, they rank sixth in points given up with 108 per game. According to NBA.com, the Sixers have the fifth-best team defensive rating in the league.

Against the Wizards, Philly was intrigued with a shootout. Attempting 91 shots as a whole, the Sixers drained 56 percent of their field goal attempts on offense. Joel Embiid dominated in the scoring department, putting up 48 points in 30 minutes.

On the other side, the Wizards averaged 51 percent from the field, taking 96 shots. From three, they looked solid by averaging 41 percent. When it came down to it, the Wizards didn’t have an answer for the Joel Embiid-Tyrese Maxey two-man game, which generated 70 points and 17 assists. Fortunately for Philadelphia, their star core was so dominant it helped them score a season-high 146 points on Monday.

Although Nurse wasn’t totally pleased with his team giving up 128 points, well above their average, he remains encouraged about his 5-1 team moving forward.

“I just think that I’m learning a lot about them, and they’re getting better and seeing a lot of different stuff,” Nurse concluded. “We’re getting better, making just little tweaks to things that are, they’re able to pick up pretty quickly.”

On Wednesday, the Sixers are set to take on the Boston Celtics. With both teams entering the matchup with the same 5-1 record, the battle offers both squads a tough test early on.