Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 23.5
VJ Edgecombe – 16
Joel Embiid – 13.5
Paul George – 8
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 5
Justin Edwards – 4
Andre Drummond – 3
Quentin Grimes – 3
Jared McCain – 3
Dominick Barlow – 2
MarJon Beauchamp – 2
Adem Bona – 1
Porter Martone – 1
Cam Payne – 1
Jabari Walker – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1
Philadelphia 76ers fans must collectively feel like they’re experiencing some sort of fever dream. Up against the heavily favored Celtics, the Sixers outplayed,
outcoached and outhustled Boston on their way to a 106-93 victory that wasn’t that close. The Sixers have tied their first-round series up at three games apiece to force a Game 7 in Boston on Saturday.
Winning the game is one thing, but Philadelphia reached a level of play towards the end of the second quarter and the third period that left fans downright giddy. The Sixers were flamethrowers shooting the basketball, soaring for hellacious dunks, playing tight defense on a string, skying to block Boston attempts at the rim, and throwing passes behind their back like the Globetrotters. It was quite possibly the best stretch of basketball this group has played this season, and to do it on this stage against this opponent is remarkable. Joe Mazzulla pulled his starters with over 10 minutes left and that Boston bench group actually went on an 11-0 run to briefly have “oh no” running through our minds. But the Sixers quickly course-corrected and finished becoming the embodiment of the ‘team nobody wants to play’ the national media would claim them to be whenever they had a solid couple games this season.
The only shame is we have to whittle down tonight’s Bell Ringer options to just a few names, when, to paraphrase Jason Kelce, it was the whole team.
Paul George: 23 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 4 turnovers
Put your Podcast P jokes in deep storage. Paul George showed up in a big way in Game 6, looking every bit the max player the Sixers signed up for when they brought him in during free agency two summers ago. He was a monster defensively, joining forcing with Kelly Oubre to make life miserable for the Jay team. Offensively, PG hit some open looks playing off the Sixers’ main two stars, but also scaled up when needed, hitting a bevy of tough, contested looks to create offense from nothing. We basically watched a lower usage version of George that used to go toe-to-toe with LeBron in the playoffs a decade ago with Indiana. It was a remarkable two-way performance that could go down as his best game in a Sixers uniform.
Tyrese Maxey: 30 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 0 turnovers
With a lot of the team struggling to buy a bucket early despite getting good looks, Maxey was the one doing the lion’s share of the heavy lifting offensively. He dropped 21 points in the first half, making all three of his attempts from behind the arc, which forced Boston to close out hard, setting the stage for Maxey to drive in and do his damage on the interior. Two things have stood out to me about Maxey’s game in these recent weeks. First, he’s making some crazy circus shots around the cup, just showing off insane body control for someone streaking in as fast as he is. Then, it’s something that won’t really show up in the box score, but Tyrese is doing a wonderful job holding up against Boston’s bigger wings when a defensive switch results in those situations. Boston is understandably trying to attack that matchup, but Maxey is holding up and it’s not really much of an advantage for the Celtics. He has come so far as a defender. Remember, he’s doing all this with a bum pinky too.
Joel Embiid: 19 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover
Less than one week ago, we wouldn’t have been surprised if Joel Embiid next took to a basketball court again in the fall. Instead, the big man has played the last three games following an emergency appendectomy, and could be in the midst of writing the most impressive playoff chapter of his career. Although his shot wasn’t falling on Thursday (just 6-of-18 from the field), Embiid positively impacted the game in so many ways. He utilized the excessive defensive attention on him to find open teammates time after time. The behind-the-back pass to a cutting Kelly Oubre on the baseline was masterful. Embiid would have had a triple-double with ease if the Sixers had been hitting shots at a normal clip during the first part of the game. Joel is also doing a terrific job of navigating pick-and-rolls as a defender, moving extremely well for someone who was hospitalized very recently. He also performed admirably on the defensive boards, making a concerted effort to get a body on someone whenever a shot went up. This series is Exhibit J.2 of why no one should question Embiid’s desire to get back on the court and compete ever again.
