The Philadelphia 76ers are generally one of the better defensive teams in the league, but in Saturday’s win over the Indiana Pacers, they had their issues defending the Pacers out on the perimeter. Young wings Furkan Korkmaz and Matisse Thybulle had their struggles defending T.J. Warren and Jeremy Lamb and it forced coach Brett Brown to make a change.
So, he decided to roll with a proven veteran in James Ennis III down the stretch in the fourth quarter along with the other four regular starters. With Josh Richardson still hampered by a hamstring issue and the youngsters struggling on defense, Ennis III did his job and helped the Sixers hold on for the win.
This comes off the heels of an impressive game against the New York Knicks on Friday when he poured in 20 points off the bench and he gives Brown a steady presence off the bench.
“James has been steady throughout,” said Brown. “For me, it’s like I like him as kind of a solid player coming off the bench. When you get down to making a decision like ‘who’s going to end the game?’ I’ve got a decision to make. You look at Matisse, Furk, or James and I think James has been that person for me. I like him coming off the bench. It’s another stable, veteran mind that can shoot and guard.”
Along with his defense, Ennis scored nine points as he knocked down a couple of shots from deep and it’s that type of production that can keep him in the rotation consistently. While Korkmaz will receive a start when it’s needed due to his ability to provide some quick offense, a veteran like Ennis will add that steady presence in case he isn’t producing to Brown’s liking.
“We go with a wild card like Furk to see what he can do with the start surrounded by a pretty good starting five,” Brown explained. “That’s the reason I do it, how I end the game is the decision I just said. James has been playing well, he was playing well tonight and rewarded with the minutes that he closed the game out with.”
The Sixers will hope to have Richardson back on Monday when they host the Utah Jazz, but he is listed as doubtful so it can be assumed that Korkmaz and Ennis will factor into the rotation heavily again. [lawrence-related id=20406,20397,20389]