The Philadelphia 76ers have had a pretty rough start to the 2022-23 season. They are 1-4 after an offseason in which they made moves to improve the supporting cast and add to the depth around Joel Embiid and James Harden.
After a 119-109 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday to begin a four-game road trip, the alarms have grown louder in Philadelphia.
Offensively, the Sixers are dead last in pace. That cannot happen when a team has Harden and Tyrese Maxey on it. Embiid slows up some of what Philadelphia does because of his style of play, but that doesn’t excuse them for playing so slow.
The Sixers know they can turn to the pick-and-roll between Embiid and Harden when they need a bucket, but the big fella wants the ball moved more and get everybody involved.
“We’re 1-4 so we got a lot of work to do,” Embiid told reporters. “Something is not working. We know what works. Obviously, him and me in the pick-and-roll is almost unstoppable, but there’s so many ways. It’s not just about us. We gotta get everybody on the same page. We gotta get everybody to play at the same level. I still think the ball is sticking too much. We gotta get the ball moving side-to-side.”
That is the biggest thing right now for Philadelphia, there is no creativity. The ball is sticking and it’s leading to poor offensive execution.
“We can always go to the pick-and-roll,” Embiid added. “I can always go to post up all the time, but for us to win, you can’t win that way. You gotta get everybody involved and you gotta get the ball moving.”
As far as Embiid is concerned, he has had two strong games in a row. He had 31 points in the loss to the Raptors, and he believes he is beginning to look like himself following the plantar fasciitis he dealt with before the season.
“I think each game, I’ve been getting better. I’m feeling great,” he finished. “I feel like I’m almost back to myself and you can tell by the progression from the first and second game to now. I’m starting to really look a little bit like myself, but I got a long way to go. We don’t have time. I don’t have time. I gotta do whatever is necessary to win games.”
The Sixers will face the Raptors again in Toronto on Friday to continue the road trip.
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