Three Normal Things: Sixers Vs. Knicks
Three Normal Things: Sixers Vs. Knicks
Three Normal Things
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 back to Three Normal Things! Here’s what I took away from tonight’s rematch against the Knicks:
#1: Thoughts on Kyle Lowry
Kyle Lowry has been the talk of the town all day after reports surfaced that the North Philly native could be on the move before the March 25 trade deadline.
It almost feels needless to say, but Lowry would be a massive acquisition for the Sixers, even when considering what they’d have to give up to get him -- Danny Green, among other rotation players, at least one of the others being a valuable young player and at least one first-round pick.
Lowry becoming the floor general for a team that also has Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris would certainly be a lethal dynamic come playoff time. The Sixers would be putting together a top-end of the roster that one could argue is better than any other outside of Brooklyn.
#2: Struggles in the half-court
The Sixers have been uncharacteristically solid offensively amid the absence of Embiid, but tonight they saw some significant regression. Harris struggled mightily, Simmons failed to consistently generate good shots, and the team got almost nothing out of the center position.
Nights like tonight show just how vital Embiid’s scoring has been this year. The Sixers have few surefire options, and none even close to as reliable as Embiid and his post-ups, face-ups and paint scoring. The Sixers were lucky to have their bench keep them relatively afloat tonight thanks to some tough shot-making.
#3: Resurgence from the rookie
Tyrese Maxey has spent quite a while now out of the rotation, but due to injuries he has made his way back into Doc Rivers’ plans.
Tonight, we saw the upside of playing someone like Maxey. Even though he only played a few relatively short stints, he was able to slice through the defense with his excellent first step and he finished at the rim in crafty fashion. With reinforcements likely coming in the next few days, it’s unclear whether or not Maxey has a genuine chance of becoming an everyday player once again. But he gave the Sixers a nice jolt of energy tonight.