Other Bench Minutes
Burks was not the only bench player to get shorted minutes as Matisse Thybulle also only played 12 minutes and Furkan Korkmaz only got 14 minutes of burn. The offense never hit its stride and the defensive woes were even more concerning. The Sixers gave up an inexcusable 46 points in the 4th quarter and they never found an answer for TJ Warren’s 53 point performance. After all the recent talk of Simmons deserving to be in the DPOY discussion, TJ Warren ate him up with a subpar effort that rivaled his LSU days. In the time Simmons spent being the primary defender on Warren, TJ scored 24 points while shooting 9 of 10 from the field and 5 of 5 from 3 point range. Mike Scott and Glenn Robinson III both missed the game and GRIII has the potential to be a key piece moving in the rotation when he returns.
It was especially daunting to see the decisions made down the stretch. Up 10 points with 8 minutes and 38 seconds left, Brett Brown subbed out Embiid and Tobias Harris who were the team’s most consistent scorers on the day. At that point, the Pacers went on a 14-3 run to take the lead 102-101. Flashbacks of last year’s playoffs ensued as Horford played no better than the efforts of Greg Monroe or Boban Marjanovic. Tonight’s bench woes also fall on the heels of a 31-point performance from Trey Burke. While it is true that Burke would not have been the long-term answer either, it is undeniable the talent that Trey flashed. The situation never played itself out for the 27-year-old former Michigan stand-out (or his father), and Brett Brown’s coaching style seemed far from a match.
What was most concerning out of Brett Brown was the decision making down the stretch. Despite never finding their stride in the game, the Sixers till held an 87-81 lead going into the fourth quarter. The “Embiid Factor” was in full effect as JoJo netted a +21 rating on the day despite the loss. Say what you want about Embiid’s health, but he is a legitimate star and the team looks completely different without him on the court. The hopes of Horford being able to be the answer as a backup center took a major hit as the Sixers were -26 with him on the court.
The nervous whispers of Embiid not being healthy were shushed rather quickly on Saturday as JoJo finished the game with a dominant 41 point and 21 rebound performance. Joel proved he is the clear number 1 offensive option and his presence was greatly missed every second he spent on the bench. The trio of Embiid, Tobias, and Simmons combined for 90 points, which is all you can ask for. If they can produce up to that standard on a regular basis one would expect our chances to be pretty strong. It wasn’t an ideal game, but it is one that should have provided Brett Brown with enough to juice out a victory.
Game management has always been the biggest flaw in Brett Brown’s coaching ability and this will become a bigger deal as the team heads toward the playoffs. There are still 7 more seeding games before playoffs, so it is not time to chalk it up yet. But it should not be forgotten how warm Brown’s seat was starting to feel when the season was put on hold. This year’s Sixers team is loaded with more key pieces than has been seen in a long time, but it is up to Brett Brown to put the puzzle together. The game Saturday did not go according to plan from the start, but Brown must be able to adjust to this on the fly. The ability to put the proper line-up out there to scrape out winnable games is what separates a championship-contending team from a pretender. Failure to see growth in this area from Brown continues to be a source of a major source of frustration. The Sixers will look to bounce back against the Spurs, and hopefully the impressive Sixers team we have only seen flashes of decides to show up.
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
