When the Philadelphia 76ers acquired Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III from the Golden State Warriors back in February, the Sixers were looking for them to add more bench scoring and shooting. However, they did not have much time to get into a groove before the league shut down March 11.
Robinson III has had time with coach Brett Brown and his schemes before so he still has an idea of what’s expected of him. As far as Burks is concerned? Not just yet. He mentioned before the team left for Orlando, he admitted that he still not sure what his role will be and after a week of practicing inside the bubble, he is still working to learn his role on the team.
“It’s only been, what, a week of practice?” said Burks. “It’s like a regular training camp so it’s still a work in progress. I’m still getting to know everybody, they’re getting to know me. We’ll just see how we progress and it will be more clear as the games come along.”
The Sixers are planning to run some more pick-and-roll with their new lineup and that is something more tailored to Burks’ game. Before the season was suspended, Philadelphia ran the pick-and-roll only 13.1% of the time per NBA Stats. With the new changes, that should help Burks fit into the Sixers more.
“I like playing the pick-and-roll. I learned it a lot in my years past, just trying to master it.” Burks added. “I think it plays to my game very well. I think it’s great for our team. I think with the weapons we have, I think most of our ball-handlers play great in the pick-and-roll with Ben (Simmons), Joel (Embiid), Al (Horford), Mike (Scott), KO (Kyle O’Quinn). I think we can play great off each other so I think it’s a great thing for the team in general beside myself.”
Alec Burks says he’s still learning his role here moving forward and the more pick-and-rolls the team will use will help him a lot #Sixers pic.twitter.com/oZsnEmFEFv
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) July 17, 2020
Due to the fact that the Sixers are such a new team, it can be tough to build chemistry. However, living inside the bubble where the only people you can really interact with are your teammates, which helps Burks build some time with his new team.
“I think for me, because I haven’t been here that long, I got to know the guys a little bit better being down here in this bubble doing different things,” he explained. “It’s been good, great for me.”
The bubble has been tricked out with a lot of different activities to do while being safe. There are video games, a player’s lounge with ping-pong tables and card games, golfing, fishing, and everything else that can bring a team together.
“It’s like a summer camp down here,” laughed Burks. “You’re around your teammates, your coaches, and staff, you do all of the activities together like golfing and fishing. It takes you back to like a kid in a sense.”
The Sixers play their first scrimmage game on July 24 against the Memphis Grizzlies. [lawrence-related id=34806,34800,34791]