The Philadelphia 76ers made a savvy move in the offseason when they brought in Georges Niang on a cheap deal in free agency. The Sixers needed some size and an upgrade over Mike Scott off their bench. They viewed Niang as that guy.
In Tuesday’s win over the Toronto Raptors, Niang proved his value once again to the Sixers when he hopped off the bench and poured in 19 points. including eight in the fourth quarter, to help Philadelphia hold off the pesky Raptors.
Niang is averaging a career-high 10.5 points while shooting 39.6% from deep, and he gives the Sixers a versatility off their bench.
“Georges pretty much keeps the game simple,” said coach Doc Rivers. “Every once in a while he tried to do too much with the ball and drive, but Georges is the perfect player for this team. We’re playing him out of position a little bit right now, him and Tobias (Harris), 3-4-5 to give us some size, but I like it.”
Niang missed four games and 10 days in the health and safety protocol. The matchup with the Raptors was his second game back. This was a good performance to get him back on track.
“Last game was a good game for me to get my feet up under me,” said Niang. “This game, I just wanted to come in and come out being aggressive. I didn’t want to kind of like let the game come to me. As you saw my first shot went off the side of the backboard, but I just wanted to impose my will and be aggressive, and that’s what I did while I was in there.”
Led by Niang and the bench unit in the early part of the fourth quarter on Tuesday, the Sixers thwarted a late charge from the Raptors. The bench unit built a 12-point lead only to have Toronto rally and take a 1-point lead. The Sixers answered to pick up an important win.
“We’re coming together,” Niang added. “We’re doing things as a unit. There’s no individualism here. We’re coming together and we’re making plays together and I think that’s the biggest thing for us as we continue to do that. We’re gonna continue to win those close games down the stretch because we’re leaning on each other.”
Even when Rivers put the starting unit back on the floor, he kept Niang out there. He did so to add a little more size, but he also liked his fit with the starters and to give help to Embiid.
“I like that closing lineup that we have on the floor because we were big,” Rivers added. “I thought that helped us rebound, and they had the guard on Georges. They were worried about Georges and that helps Joel when we go down to the post.”
Niang is proving he can be an important piece to this team moving forward. His shooting and versatility are huge pieces for their bench unit to support the starting group.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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