Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown has always used the word “spirit” when describing his group. How his team is reacting to things and how they continue to fight even when the chips are down is always on his mind.
He has to be concerned with that effort after a terrible loss to the Miami Heat on Monday where they gave up 81 points in the second half on their way to a 137-106 loss.
They did not play with much of anything. They did not have much spirit and they did not have much gumption that suggested they are a championship contender.
“What I do know is that for me, it’s reflective of defense,” said Brown. “I think that when you’re with the guys at practice and shoot around, their eyes are wide and they’re good, they’re really good. To see it not have any carry over to the court, lately, it’s obviously a concern.”
The Sixers had some major issues on the defensive end of the floor and that’s where Brown keeps his focus on after the loss. Especially, after the poor efforts against the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics to begin the trip.
“I think to look further for me than like why, I go to defense first,” he added. “I think that we had some of our starters struggle tonight, but I thought our defense was poor and the connection to the spirit of the attitude of the group does not point to what ended up happening in the game, which normally is not the case.”
The spirit of a basketball team can be affected the most on the defensive end at times. It’s on that end of the floor where teams have to really dig in and get the job done and the first three games of this trip have been rough for this team, as has been the case on the road for the majority of the season.
They will have to figure it out on Thursday against the Milwaukee Bucks. [lawrence-related id=24900,24891,24883]