Pros and Cons: Sixers vs. Heat
Good and bad after Sixers-Heat.
Adam Aaronson, whose legal name is Sixers Adam (@SixersAdam on Twitter), covers the Sixers for The Rights To Ricky Sanchez. He believes cantaloupe is the best food in existence, and is brought to you by the Official Realtor of The Process, Adam Ksebe.
With James Harden sidelined nursing his hamstring, the Sixers traveled to Miami for a battle between the Eastern Conference’s top two teams. Here’s what jumped out to me tonight:
Pro: Tyrese Maxey, the sharpshooter
Maxey is the talk of the town right now, as he’s flourished more than anyone could have anticipated playing alongside Harden.
Last night, I dove into Maxey’s excellence. Here is part of what I wrote:
“Maxey appears to just be a full-blown star in the present. He is a sponge, rapidly picking up skill after skill, shot after shot, move after move. He plays with an electricity, a motor, and a pace that is almost never seen in the NBA.”
The greatest example of his brilliant developmental arc is his trajectory as a three-point shooter. Maxey entered the NBA a timid shooter from beyond the arc, frequently passing up threes for inferior looks in the mid-range.
As he’s developed, he’s become more comfortable as a spot-up shooter. But the evolution didn’t stop there. Because now, Maxey is not only a willing three-point shooter, but an eager one.
And now, we are watching a much more complete version of Maxey, one who will confidently catch and shoot, and even create his own tries from beyond the arc with advanced dribble moves.
Maxey has been knocking down threes at an excellent clip recently. But what is equally important to me as his amount of made shots is his amount of attempts from deep. No matter who you are, shots will sometimes not go down. But when you play with the right idea in mind like Maxey has of late, things will turn out well for you far more often.
Con: Joel Embiid has an off-night
I almost forgot what a down game looked like for Embiid, who has been nearly perfect this season as he builds a strong MVP case.
Tonight, though, Embiid struggled on the offensive end, knocking down just four of his 15 field goal attempts, including a 2-10 line in the first half. Miami did an excellent job of frequently doubling Embiid and showing him a crowd, using their length to frequently bother him. Embiid salvaged it to an extent by being able to get to the line — he ended up shooting 14 free throws — but he struggled to score the old-fashioned way.
Embiid was more than due for a suboptimal performance -- if anyone deserves some leeway, it’s him. But with Harden out in a game against a team as good as Miami, the Sixers don’t have much of a chance if their centerpiece doesn’t bring his A-Game.
Con: Tobias Harris’ struggles continue
One reason the Sixers couldn’t survive an Embiid down spell is because of their lack of reliable offense outside of Harden and Maxey. And there is a certain $180 million man who hasn’t always been reliable this season.
Harris has really been the only Sixers regular to struggle more since the Harden trade. He’s had a lot of trouble finding his footing within the offense, as the team needs him to be a quick decision-maker rather than a methodical thinker.
With Harden unavailable, Harris was set for a more featured role tonight. But even then, he found himself having a tough time yet again, going just 6-15 from the field and putting himself and his teammates in difficult situations.
There’s no doubt that Harris is a good NBA player. But sooner than later, he needs to adapt his playstyle to make it conducive to winning basketball for this specific team. With Embiid and Harden as centerpieces, he just has to be able to catch and shoot in a hurry.
I’m not going to say Harris’ playing time needs to be cut… for now. But the fact of the matter is, right now, this offense makes a whole lot more sense with Georges Niang out there instead of Harris. I do believe Harris is capable of figuring this out -- but he needs to do it soon.