MIAMI — The Philadelphia 76ers had themselves a tough night in Game 1 against the Miami Heat on Monday to open up the Eastern Conference semifinals where they trailed by as many as 21 in a 106-92 loss.
Without Joel Embiid, the Sixers turned to DeAndre Jordan in his place. The 14-year veteran did some good things in terms of catching lobs, but he had a hard time on the glass and he was bad on the defensive end. He finished as a minus-22 in only 17:17 of playing time.
In Jordan’s defense, the entire starting lineup wasn’t good in this one. He also gave the team a boost a bit to start the third quarter in order to give Philadelphia a cushion, but overall, it’s hard to justify starting him going forward.
However, coach Doc Rivers and the Sixers are going to continue going to him.
“We talked to our guys,” said Rivers after the loss. “They wanted a big roller and I thought in the second half, that’s how he has to play every night. Those first four or five minutes were great from him. That’s what we need. We love Paul (Reed), but we don’t need Paul in foul trouble and that’s why you don’t wanna start him.”
Heading into Game 2, Rivers did reveal that the Sixers will continue to go to the veteran out of Texas A&M.
“We like DJ,” Rivers added. “We’re gonna keep starting him whether you like it or not. That’s what we’re gonna do because our guys believe in him. At halftime, we asked our key guys because we were thinking about it because I thought Paul Millsap gave us some decent minutes, and to a man, that’s where they wanted to go.”
Doc Rivers: “We like DJ. We’re gonna keep starting him whether you like it or not.” #Sixers
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) May 3, 2022
Game 2 against the Heat is set for Wednesday in Miami. While Jordan had himself a tough night, Reed did have five fouls in 13:03 and Millsap had a few bad moments on defense. Without Embiid, there really isn’t much Rivers can do.
As they move forward in this series, Jordan may very well just be the guy.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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