The Philadelphia 76ers paid a visit to the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday looking to pick up a much-needed win over the San Antonio Spurs and finish up their 3-game road trip on the right note. The Sixers entered the night missing some key pieces as Joel Embiid, Kyle Lowry, Tobias Harris, De’Anthony Melton, and Robert Covington were all sidelined.
Without Embiid down low, the challenge of defending Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama was an obvious one. It was tough for Philadelphia to slow down the likely Rookie of the Year winner, but the Sixers were able to dig deep and walk away with a 133-126 win in double overtime despite 33 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, and seven blocks from Wembanyama.
Philadelphia was led by Tyrese Maxey who was fantastic with a career-high 52 points, seven assists, and five rebounds, Kelly Oubre Jr. had 26 points and eight rebounds with five assists, and Paul Reed had 11 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Buddy Hield had 10 points off the bench, Nic Batum had nine points and seven rebounds while making some big plays, and Ricky Council IV had 11 big points.
Here are the player grades following the win:
After a slow start on the offensive end, Maxey got going in the second quarter. The young All-Star did a good job of getting himself into a rhythm by knocking down some tough jumpers and then taking defenders off the dribble and getting to the basket. San Antonio did deter him a bit with the size it presents, but Maxey was able to find his offensive groove and lead this team on offense. Overall, he struggled with his 3-point shot, but he played well and made some big plays to throw the Sixers on his back at times. He was fantastic in the fourth quarter.
Payne wasn’t able to make a big offensive impact in this one. He had a tough time really getting into any type of rhythm. The Spurs did a good job of slowing him down on the perimeter and giving him a lot of trouble. There were also some defensive issues for Payne. It wasn’t his best night overall.
The Sixers received a nice offensive night from Oubre. With Philadelphia down some key pieces, it was important that Oubre continued to step up and give the Sixers a boost on the offensive end. He was aggressive looking for his own scoring and did a great job of attacking this Spurs defense. He did some good things all night long on both ends of the floor. He is going to play a big role for Philadelphia when the playoffs roll around.
Batum did some Batum things on the night. He provided a lot of high basketball IQ plays and created some extra looks for the Sixers by hustling and being helpful on the glass. He drilled two ginormous triples in the fourth quarter to keep Philadelphia and then a big one with 9.3 seconds left to give the Sixers the lead. His inbounds pass on the final play of regulation to Maxey for the tie to force overtime was excellent. He also threw a terrific pass to Oubre at the end of the first overtime and he drilled another huge triple in the second overtime.
One has to give Reed a lot of credit. Going up against Wembanyama is an extremely tough challenge for anybody in the league, but for Reed especially when considering the size disadvantage. Bball Paul didn’t back down and he did a good job of just battling and staying in it despite everything that’s thrown at him. Wemby just made some ridiculous plays that a player of his size shouldn’t be able to do. He had some nice offensive moments as well and that’s something he can hang his hat on.
The night for Hield started well. He drilled a triple off an inbounds pass in his initial stint as he continues to try and find his groove again from 3-point range. He also made helpful plays with his passing on the offensive end. He didn’t do much in the second half, however, and he had a big goof when he got back on defense when the Sixers had the ball. Overall, though, there were some defensive issues for him in this one, but there were some positives he can take from this performance.
Making his return from an illness, Bamba hopped off the bench and immediately knocked down a triple and came up with a blocked shot on the other end. He had some good moments in this one on the defensive end and on the glass. Defending Wembanyama is an unenviable task, but Bamba did an OK job on him. Wemby just made some insane shots.
One has to wonder whether Martin will see some time in the playoffs. He did some good things in this one with his athleticism and physical play. That can be a big help for Philadelphia in the postseason. The lack of size for him was an issue against guys like Wemby and Zach Collins, but Martin did some good things in this one, especially with some big buckets in the first overtime session.
The Sixers needed somebody to run the offense for the second unit and Dowtin was that guy. He hopped off the bench and got everybody in the right spots on the offensive end while also giving Philadelphia some help on the defensive end out on the perimeter.
The Sixers needed a spark in the fourth quarter so coach Nick Nurse turned to Council IV and he had some really good moments. The rookie was fearless going at Wembanyama and into the teeth of San Antonio’s defense. He gave Philadelphia a big spark on the offensive end with his physicality and athleticism. The plays he made in the two overtime sessions were really impressive.