With the Philadelphia 76ers in Las Vegas competing in the 2021 NBA Summer League, this offers the opportunity for the younger players on the roster to continue to grow and develop their individual games.
For second-year guard Isaiah Joe, he now has an opportunity to show off what he has continued to work on out on the floor in a game atmosphere. The sharpshooter from Arkansas had a big game on Thursday scoring 21 points with five rebounds and four assists while knocking down five triples in a win over the Atlanta Hawks in Vegas.
The five triples made are nothing new when it comes to Joe, but he was able to put the ball on the floor and get to the basket while also creating for others. The four assists are something that he did not get the chance to show off in his rookie season in Philadelphia.
“That’s one thing that I really work on a lot, been working on a lot for the past few years,” said Joe on Thursday. “So getting into the game, the coaching staff, my teammates are real confident in me to be able to play make and so once they put that trust in me, I know that I can go out there and do my thing so we were able to let loose.”
The fact that Joe can now put the ball on the floor and create a bit more is something that summer league coach Brian Adams can use for his offense moving forward in Vegas. It will also help Philadelphia in the coming seasons.
“He’s proving that he can handle and pick-and-rolls as a secondary ball-handler,” said Adams. “We’ve known that, but now this is an opportunity because obviously, he didn’t play a ton this season. He’s getting the minutes to show that and it’s just kind of shining through naturally. It’s great to see and it’s now, as a coach, something I can incorporate more.”
Then, there is Joe’s play on the defensive end. There were plenty of times where the second-year guard was able to step up and make some plays on that end of the floor and that is something that he has continued to take pride in.
“Effort, film, being able to trust that you have help on the defensive end, I think all those play a big aspect in defense,” Joe explained. “You gotta be really, really aggressive on the ball and off the ball and I think our coaching staff, they really harp on defense first, and that’s one thing I really take pride in as I’m leaning on our defense and we’re going to continue to do that.”
The Sixers got a bit of a preview of Joe’s entire package in the 2020-21 season when they were hit hard with the league’s health and safety protocols. Joe had to play much more due to the fact that Philadelphia could not turn to anybody else. He is now able to show that off even more in the summer league.
“At the end of the day with Isaiah, because he shoots the ball so dynamically, I think we always just think shooter, shooter, shooter, but he’s actually a pretty good on-ball defender,” Adams added. “Defensive, schematically, he knows what to do.”
It also helps that Joe can lean on guys like Ben Simmons, Danny Green, Matisse Thybulle, and others for any more advice that he needs. He has kept in touch with the team’s veterans throughout the offseason.
“We stay in touch a little bit,” Joe finished. “They always, as veterans, they always try to stay in touch with us just to make sure that we’re doing alright. I really appreciate that because moving on to the future, I want to do that to young guys too, so that really gives us confidence. It helps us with our future.”
Philadelphia will take on the Boston Celtics on Saturday out in Vegas.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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