The Philadelphia 76ers have struggled on the defensive end thus far to begin the 2020 playoffs and that is why they find themselves in an 0-2 hole against the Boston Celtics.
Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kemba Walker have all been tough to stop and that is something that is going to be a constant issue unless something changes. Tatum is averaging 32.5 points through two games, Brown is up to 24.5, and Walker is at 20.5 and for Philadelphia to have a shot at winning this series, they have to find a way to stop that explosive trio.
“I think that we need to make our presence felt a little bit more defensively and really take on the challenge,” said veteran Al Horford. “That’s something that we talked about in practice and that’s something that we want to make sure that we’re setting the tone. That we’re playing the way that we know what we’re capable of at the defensive end. Really setting the tone and making it hard for them.”
A big issue against the Celtics so far has been the struggle defending their pick-and-roll game which has caused Boston to step into easy jumpers. The Sixers like to have Joel Embiid sit back in the paint rather than show any pressure, however, that is an adjustment that coach Brett Brown is willing to make if it will help.
“Defensively, in the second half, we had our bigs up on pick-and-rolls. In the first half, maybe we could have gone at it sooner,” said Brown.
Perimeter defenders Matisse Thybulle and Josh Richardson did do a solid job of getting out to their shooters, but those guys are just elite shooters and elite offensive players.
“When I look at it, Kemba really didn’t make threes, Jayson did,” said Brown. “When you see the threes that they made, look at Matisse Thybulle, look at J-Rich, look at them stalking and being millimeters away from blocking their shot so I think two things, they’re great players, they made their shots. Could we have had the bigs up sooner? Maybe, but it’s never clear cut that the ripple effects of what happens behind Joel being up aren’t more punishing than that adjustment.”
To Brown’s point, it can be an issue if he does decide to bring the big man out of the paint as that will expose easy back cuts to the basket. However, without Ben Simmons on the perimeter to clean up a lot of mistakes, something has to give and something has to change in order to get back in the series.
There also has to be a level of physicality to get it done on that end. Using their size, their defense, and their spirit that Brown continues to preach is the only way they will get back in this series.
“That’s got to be our focus,” Horford added. “Our backs are against the wall and we need to respond tomorrow.”
Game 3 is Friday night inside the bubble. [lawrence-related id=37011,37004,36999]