Three Normal Things: Sixers Vs. Jazz
Three Normal Things: Sixers Vs. Jazz
Closing out the first half with a big one.
Adam Aaronson, whose legal name is Sixers Adam (@SixersAdam on Twitter), covers the Sixers for The Rights To Ricky Sanchez. He has been legally banned from covering the team in person, and when that ban was set to be lifted, Covid-19 struck. He believes cantaloupe is the best food in existence, and is brought to you by the Official Realtor of The Process, Adam Ksebe.
Welcome to another edition of Three Normal Things! We’ve got a lot to get to after that thriller of a game, so let’s begin.
Observation #1: My take on the Defensive Player of the Year race
This is not an observation specific to tonight’s game (in fact, I am writing this about an hour and a half before tip-off). But with Rudy Gobert and the Jazz in town, it seems timely to discuss.
Doc Rivers said in his pregame media availability that Ben Simmons deserved DPOY, but that Rudy Gobert would be second place. Doc’s rationale was that Gobert only guards one position, while Ben can guard all of them.
Doc is right! Simmons provides a level of versatility that Gobert does not, and he in turn makes defensive scheming easier. But it’s not that simple for me.
In today’s NBA, I’m taking an elite rim protector before an elite perimeter defender. Most data points we have suggest that the former is far more important as far as team defense goes. So, here’s how I’d frame my opinion: I am more impressed by what Ben Simmons is doing, but if I had a DPOY vote, I would give it to Gobert based on the larger impact that rim protectors have defensively.
Observation #2: This team needs shooting
Whether this means they have to trade for a shooter or encourage the current personnel to shoot from beyond the arc more often, I’m not entirely sure. But the Sixers entered tonight with the 28th-most three-point attempts per game, and tonight’s game -- against a Utah team leading the league in three-point attempts per game -- highlighted the problems that arise with infrequent three-point shooting
Observation #3: Doc needs a new prescription
Clever, right?
Tonight, an all-bench lineup of Shake Milton, Furkan Korkmaz, Matisse Thybulle, Mike Scott and Dwight Howard helped keep the Sixers in this game with a strong showing early in the fourth quarter.
HOWEVER…
It was one thing for Doc Rivers to put out all-bench units when Tobias Harris was out. But when you have Harris, Simmons and Joel Embiid all available, you need to have at least one of them on the floor at all times. There just is not enough individual offensive talent left on the roster to take such a luxury.
Tonight ended up working out for the best, but we are very close to seeing this become Doc’s thing that drives everyone insane and that he refuses to change moving forward.
Bonus Observation: Joel Embiid is the god damn MVP and everyone should bow down to him