What is the story about?
We are so back.
The Sixers tipped off their preseason with a 120-97 win over the defending champion New York Knicks Monday night.
In his first game as a Sixer, Jaylen Brown put up 22 points, shooting 8-of-13 from the floor along with two rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes of action. VJ Edgecombe played 19 minutes and put up 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting with four rebounds and seven assists.
Out tonight for the Sixers was LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Anfernee Simons, Dominick Barlow and
Adem Bona. Before the game, Nick Nurse said he’s aiming to get the starters in two of their four preseason games, and that he isn’t concerned about the minor injuries picked up by Simons and Barlow.
The Sixers did suffer a potential costly injury early with big man Ariel Hukporti leaving the game with an injury.
Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.
First Quarter
- As expected, the offense early was centered around Brown. He got to his spots to pull up, but missed his first two attempts and split his first pair of free throws as well. He had a layup roll out on him but fought for the offensive rebound, putting it back and getting fouled in the process.
- 99% of the preseason is just getting through it healthy. Unfortunately, Ariel Hukporti went down just five minutes into the game, favoring his right ankle in what looked like a non-contact injury. His former Knicks teammates were quick to put an arm around him as he was being helped off the floor. Jabari Walker came in to replace him, now the only healthy backup five on the team.
- Brown did eventually get into a rhythm, making three straight shots to put up 13 in the quarter. Edgecombe made his presence felt as well, consistently getting to the basket successfully, but he couldn’t get a jumper to fall. Labaron Philon Jr. was the first sub of the night but he took a back seat for the first few minutes of his shift as those two were cooking. Philon made his first shot of the night, a pull-up jumper from the midrange.
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope became the latest Sixer to get in on the fun with a quick seven points to end the quarter. He drilled a three that looked like it would keep the Sixers up by three, but a missed boxout allowing OG Anunoby to grab the rebound and get fouled on the putback attempt. He split his pair of free throws, giving the Sixers a two-point lead after a high-scoring first.
Second Quarter
- The concerns about this center rotation were on display as the Sixers gave up three more offensive rebounds early in the second. One was courtesy of our old friend Andre Drummond, but Brown drilled a three in his face a few possessions later as he continued to have the hot hand.
- Walker was really active with six rebounds and a couple of stocks, but being a couple inches shorter than the average center just catches up with him. On top of his strong effort on that end of the floor he knocked down his first two threes of the night, getting them up quickly. The makings of a stretch-five are there for Walker, and it’d be huge if the Sixers could unlock that.
- Brown continued to put on a show for everybody, getting up to 22 points in just under 17 minutes of play. Just as he checked out of the game, Edgecombe came in and went right back to the basket for an and-1 layup. Everything he was doing off the dribble was intriguing. He made a really nice pass to a cutting Dillon Jones, and spun around to find Caleb Love in the corner for a three as the buzzer expired. The only thing he couldn’t do in the half was a get a three-pointer to fall, but he was good enough to help the Sixers get out to a 14-point lead.
Third Quarter
- Neither Brown or Edgecombe were out on the floor to start the second half, officially ending their nights. Walker started the half with another three, but the team cooled down, missing five straight shots. The Knicks got aggressive in where they were picking up the Sixers, forcing them higher up the court and forcing worse passes and shots as a result.
- It was encouraging to see Philon be the one to put his head down and get to the basket to stop some of the bleeding. He also made a nifty behind-the-back dribble to evade a defender, but couldn’t get the floater to fall to complete the highlight play. His attack though remained the only consistent offense for the Sixers in the quarter.
- Like Edgecombe, Philon was also struggling to get his outside jumper to fall, but also like Edgecombe, it was a good quarter for him to showcase his playmaking chops. He found a cutting Jameer Nelson Jr. shortly after he checked into the game for his fourth assist of the night. Nelson finished an and-1 that helped keep the Sixers lead at 14.
Fourth Quarter
- The rest of this recap is going to be random observations about the two-ways and exhibit 10 contracts still playing in this game. Rayan Rupert has the makings of a defender. He seems to know where to be and is always hustling to get there. Nothing he did tonight really showed up in the stat sheet though, and two of his shot attempts were two of the easiest blocks for the Knicks’ defenders.
- Caleb Love is what the kids call a bucket and hooper. If shoots like he did in the first half he’s going to be very fun to watch in the preseason, but he seemed to really run out of gas in the second half. Definitely a situation worth monitoring over the next three games.
