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The Sixers’ cap is, without a doubt, the highest when their two All-Stars are available.
Still, they couldn’t have replaced Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid much better than they did Thursday night at United Center. With the duo quarantined after being exposed to an individual who tested positive for COVID-19, the Sixers overtook the Bulls in their first game after the All-Star break, a 127-105 victory.
Tony Bradley scored 14 points on a 7 for 7 shot and had five rebounds and three blocks, while Matisse Thybulle tied his career high with five steals. Tobias Harris scored 24 points on an 8 for 15 shot.
If Embiid returns a negative PCR coronavirus lab test on Friday, he will be cleared to play in the Sixers game against the Wizards. The first Simmons could return to team activities is Saturday.
Here are three observations on the 25-12 Sixers’ victory over Chicago:
Replacement starters shine
Bradley started for the first time since Jan.31 and took full advantage of the opportunity. He was sharp and clearly ready to play in his first stint, hitting a dunk after rolling over the edge of a dribble with Harris and conceding in a clean hook on Wendell Carter Jr.
We knew heading into this season that the rebound was a strong point for Bradley, but he showed on Thursday that he also has tactile and offensive skills.
Embiid looked on and impressed with what he saw from Bradley.
“I love the support, especially with Tony,” said head coach Doc Rivers. “Tony has lost a good 25 pounds since the start of the season. He works on his body and his skills every day. Just because he doesn’t. Playing doesn’t mean other guys don’t notice it. he does, I thought the whole bench – everyone – was so happy for him as he played.
“Those first two baskets, Dwight (Howard) was running around the floor to celebrate, because they saw the work. The fans, they can’t see the work the guys who don’t play (regularly) do. It was good tonight for all of us.
Thybulle, who started in Simmons’ place, was excellent from the jump, collecting four steals in the first quarter and disrupting just about everything the Bulls have tried to do offensively. Zach LaVine only scored when Thybulle went to the bench. He had 19 points on a 7 for 16 shot in the game.
That Thybulle is able to check a star while creating havoc away from the ball remains very impressive. The balance between being solid and going for highlight plays has been a tricky one for Thybulle early in his NBA career at times, but there’s no doubt he’s able to do both when he’s at his best. .
We’ve cited this statistic a few times, but it’s a good one: Coming into this game, Thybulle’s 3.2 Flying Percent and 2.6 Block Percentage were comfortably the best among all the wings on the planet. NBA, according to Cleaning the Glass. It is an outlier.
Not all performances have to be tied to the March 25 trade deadline, of course, but we’ll just say that the Sixers appreciate Thybulle’s special defensive skills and see him as more than a decent young player, as they do. should. His ability to defend the top scorers on the perimeter is always invaluable in the playoffs.
Not that it was necessary for him to have a positive impact, but Thybulle’s sweater was falling too. He scored 13 points, a season-high, in shooting 5 for 5.
Not 50, but not too shabby
Asked ahead of the game what the Sixers were hoping to see from Harris, Rivers replied, “Fifty points would be great, you know.
That’s the amount Embiid scored the last time the Sixers faced the Bulls, his career high, and obviously not a realistic goal. Harris was a long way from that pace in the first period, missing his first five field goal attempts, but he didn’t lose any aggression. He took eight free throws in the first half, making seven.
Much of the Sixers’ offense comes from Simmons and Embiid, but Harris doesn’t seem to care when more of the blame falls on him. Rivers knows he’s comfortable in the pick-and-roll and is able to consistently find mid-range looks, and Harris was good at both of those areas on Thursday.
Despite the slow start, Harris made his way against 4th overall pick Patrick Williams, who looked like a veteran star. The Sixers didn’t need him to be from another world because of what they got from Thybulle and Bradley, but credit Harris for leading the way offensively without Simmons and Embiid.
Rivers, who was feeling bad Wednesday and missed out on Sixers practice, also liked what he saw of Seth Curry, who had 12 points on a 5-for-15 shot, seven assists and two steals.
“It was really encouraging,” he said. “I was obviously in bed during practice, but I watched it on film. He and Tobias yesterday set the tone. We had a tough practice yesterday.… Back in my day, everyone called it the trash can practice where you would train for three or four hours and they would just put a trash can in the trash until the first guy threw up, then the practice was over. we went hard, and I thought Seth and Tobias in particular were setting the tone … and I thought it was postponed today.
Second strong unit while Howard does his thing
The Sixers bench helped turn things around in the second half of the team’s victory over the Jazz before the All-Star break. Howard improbably made a three-runner in a productive flurry, helping give the Sixers a shot at beating Utah.
Led by an aggressive Furkan Korkmaz (16 points) and a physical, edge-rolling Howard, the Second Unit picked up where it left off in Chicago. Howard didn’t convert every opportunity near the hoop, missing a dunk and throwing the ball out of bounds on a play he thought he had been fouled, but he retained his strength and was largely effective.
When he’s playing well, Howard is always a nuisance to the opposition, and not just because of his regular shoving. He posted a season-high 18 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks.
Although former Sixer Thaddeus Young had 14 points in 17 minutes, sometimes proving difficult to manage for Howard and Bradley, the Sixers bench dominated that of Chicago by 55-33. Rivers used a nine-man rotation, with Tyrese Maxey not appearing until the game was decided in the fourth quarter.
“I think it shows we have what we need to win,” Howard said. “We just have to believe. We have a full roster of guys who are very talented and can help on both sides of the pitch. It’s just all about believing and I think for guys like Tony tonight it shows him. that he can compete and that he can play at a high level, he just has to keep working hard like he does every day.
“I’m very proud of him, proud of this team and the way we came out tonight – but we have to keep going. We’re celebrating tonight on the plane and when we land in Washington it all depends on what we need to do in Washington. I’m really happy for this team and the success we’ve had, but we have to keep improving.
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