The Sixers managed to win yet another game at home, making their record at the WFC an incredible 20-2. Brett Brown’s gameplan on offense was surprisingly effective to start the game. It seemed as if every time the Sixers brought to ball up the court, Ben Simmons went to post up the much smaller Kris Dunn. This is one of the many ideas Sixers fans have been clamoring for. When your Point Guard is nearly seven feet tall, he should be posting up smaller guards.
The Bulls were either solid defensively or the Sixers were just weak offensively. The teams fought back and forth until the Sixers pulled away in the third quarter and never looked back. Al Horford and Ben Simmons both had impressive games scoring 20 points each, but one Sixers had a career night.
Player of the Game: Furkan Korkmaz
Love him or hate him, Korkmaz had himself a night and bailed the Sixers out of a poor offensive night. Scoring 24 points off of 8-11 shooting, Korkmaz was as efficient as you could ask. Hitting a career-high six shots from deep, Korkmaz looked like the bomber that Brett Brown has been searching for.
This was a very encouraging game for Korkmaz and you hope that he can keep this type of production up. As a cheap bench option, Korkmaz has a lot of value when he’s playing well both to the offense and the trade market.
Takeaways:
Horford’s Big Night
For the first time since November 4th, Al Horford scored 20 or more points. That’s a long time to go without that type of offensive production but it is encouraging to see. Horford is beginning to find his flow in the offense again and that couldn’t come soon enough for the Sixers. Whether they end up keeping or trading Horford, production is never a bad thing.
Offense is still a need
There is a clear need for offense on this team. Simmons Horford and Korkmaz held their own, but otherwise, it was an offensive nightmare. Tobias Harris scored an inefficient 13 points and no other Sixer had more than seven points. Josh Richardson scored only two points in 27 minutes of action.
If the Bulls weren’t so dreadful offensively, the Sixers could have easily lost this game. Elton Brand needs to be very pro-active both in the trade market and the eventual buy-out market. Shoot and shot-creators need to be the focus and there should be plenty available.
Up Next…
The Sixers will make the short trip up to NYC to face the Knicks tonight. Rookie RJ Barrett has already been confirmed to be out so the Sixers should be able to walk out with the easy win. The game is one tonight at 7:30 PM EST with coverage beginning at 7:00. You can watch it on NBC Sports Philadelphia or listen live at 97.5 FM the Fanatic.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
