The Philadelphia 76ers are a team that is built to contend for championships in the 2019-20 season and the way they plan on doing it is around their defense. The amount of long and lengthy, agile, players in their arsenal makes it easier to play defense, but one of those assets believes it can be better.
Al Horford, acquired in free agency over the summer, believes the Sixers can improve on their defense. For a team being so new, the Sixers do have a defensive rating of 104.1 which is good for 11th in the league, but it has to improve in order for the Sixers to take the next step.
Horford stated at practice on Tuesday:
I think our defense is good, but I think it can be a lot better. I do believe that the more games we play and the more comfortable we get, the better it will be.
The Sixers have given up 110.7 points per game on the road compared to 97.8 points at home and with their next three games at home, it should be able to help them continue to grow as a team. For all of the newness, it’s been tough to gain chemistry and win games on the road at the same time. It’s always good to be back at home.
Horford added:
It does feel good. Being on the road is hard and just being able to come home and have our fans rally behind us. It’s good for a change.
The Sixers will host the New York Knicks on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. EST from the Wells Fargo Center. [lawrence-related id=19539,19486,19474]