The Philadelphia 76ers are in a rough patch right now. They have started off on a three-game losing skid and it has not been pretty as there have been issues all over the place.
One of the bigger issues was the fact that superstar Joel Embiid only took four shots in the second half of the loss to the Miami Heat on Monday. He and coach Brett Brown gave different opinions on why that happened as they both were clearly frustrated with the result.
Still, the team is 51 games into what was expected to be a serious championship-contending season and there looks to be no identity for what they try to do.
“No, we don’t,” said Embiid. “Spacing is an issue. Sometimes we play fast, sometimes we play slow, but at the end of the day, when you think about it and as we try to get ready for the playoffs also, the game slows down. It becomes a half-court game and that’s where we struggle the most so hopefully we do a better job in the next three games before All-Star.”
The fast and slow issues have been apparent on this team. Obviously, they want to slow the game down and use Embiid in the low post and allow him to dominate and get to the line, but then there’s Ben Simmons who wants to play fast and he is terrific in early transition offense for them. It’s an aspect of the offense that Brown has not been able to figure out and for the big man, it’s tough to strike a balance.
“I got to do what I can,” he said. “Obviously, I feel comfortable being down there and from time-to-time, I got to spend a lot of time at the 3-point line just to make sure there is some spacing. Everybody keeps saying ‘get in the post’, but if you actually understand basketball, we’ve got to find that balance. It is not about me, it’s about the team.”
Spacing has been the biggest word for the Sixers all season. Whether it’s trying to find a way to get Embiid the ball in the low block or find a way to get Simmons to play well in the half-court offense, it’s been a challenge.
“Whatever I can do to help my teammates in the spacing, I got to do it,” the big man added. “If it means I stay at the 3-point line all game, I got to do it, I guess. At the same time, I got to find ways to maximize what I do best, but then again every team doubles me every single game. It’s hard, but we’ll figure it out.”
There have been a lot of fingers pointed at Brown. He is the coach of this team and he is the one that has to be able to get these guys all on the same page and maximize their talents, but Embiid wants to add that it’s not Brown’s fault. The players have to do their part and execute.
“We haven’t been winning, our offense has not been good,” he explained. “I always say, coaches are not out there to make shots for us. They don’t make plays, they can do a better job of setting everything up, but at the end of the day, we make the plays.”
The Sixers head to Milwaukee to face the Bucks on Thursday to finish up the four-game road trip. [lawrence-related id=24942,24935,24922]