The Philadelphia 76ers returned home to the Wells Fargo Center after a difficult night on Sunday, where they fell for the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road. They were losing the great star Joel Embiid in that game and they welcomed him back to the team and the big guy came back in a resounding way.
Embiid had a fantastic night, scoring 29 points and 16 rebounds, throwing the Sixers in the back when they needed him most in the 100-93 victory over the Toronto Raptors. Tobias Harris had one of his best games in a Sixers uniform with 26 points and 11 rebounds, Seth Curry had 17 and Ben Simmons had 11, 13 rebounds and seven assists.
That said, here are the three observations:
Slow starts
The Sixers continue to have such slow starts, which is a little surprising when considering the talent they have around Simmons and Embiid. The team found themselves losing by 41-28 before finally hitting at high speed and drawing at 48, before a more sloppy game allowed Toronto to go on an 8-0 run for 45.1 seconds to end the time. They then found themselves losing double digits again in the third quarter, before Embiid put them back.
Again, this can be pointed out by the fact that they haven’t played much together and are a whole new team with a whole new system. Eventually, this will not be a valid excuse. They will have to discover everything on the floor with this initial unit. Either they will move on with this group or Rivers will have to make a change to scare them.
Embiid managing double teams
The only positive aspect that can be drawn from this game is how Embiid handled double teams. He was quick with his passing, made the right decision when to pass out, and was energetic when time required. It is a pity that Sixers lost so many open looks in this one or that work would appear in the final score.
The reason this was impressive is because it is Toronto. Sure, Marc Gasol is gone now, but Aron Baynes also has a history of frustrating Embiid and Nick Nurse is still the coach of that team. It is important that he stood out against that specific team.
Hesitation in attack
The Sixers brought Curry to kick the ball and make room for his two stars. He does this just because he is out there, but he would be doing a lot better if he shot the open looks at him. This then seemed to have an effect on everyone, as the Sixers were rejecting open eyes on him. The hesitation to open looks probably indicates that they are still getting what Doc Rivers wants from them at that end of the room.
On the other hand, Curry is a professional sniper from 44.3% of the depths. He’s the only guy who can’t hesitate when he catches the ball. Give him credit, he dropped a big triple at the end of the game, but there should be no hesitation. He needs to put the ball up every time he catches it. That’s why the Sixers brought you here. He needs space for the two stars, so he needs to focus on that part of his game.