The Philadelphia 76ers had to turn to others to step up when they paid a visit to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday. The Sixers were already down Joel Embiid, De’Anthony Melton and Nic Batum from the starting lineup. Then they lost Tobias Harris due to a left hip impingement.
The Sixers turned to KJ Martin. The athletic, versatile forward received his first start of the year, and he rose to the occasion. He had 10 points and eight rebounds and he defended multiple players, including Donovan Mitchell to Evan Mobley.
The Sixers needed Martin’s production in a 123-121 win.
“Evan Mobley, we played against each other in high school so I played against him a lot,” Martin told reporters after the win. “Obviously, my past couple years in the league — Donovan Mitchell also, I played against him a bunch of Utah so I remember stuff they like to get to. Obviously, they become better every year, but just the basic stuff and just me using my quickness and my size helps me a lot.”
Martin may only stand 6 feet, 6 inches, but he has a great deal of strength. He’s barrel-chested and can bother his opponents in different ways. Against the Cavs, he used his skills the right way when depending on the matchup.
“Obviously, against Evan Mobley, I felt like I had more strength on him and then Donovan Mitchell, I have more size on him,” Martin explained. “So I just tried to use my body, put my arms up.”
The win on Monday was an impressive one for this group. The Sixers needed it as they try to find their footing without the injured Joel Embiid. They have one game left on Wednesday against the Miami Heat before the All-Star break.
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