[jwplayer 3TswHlh9-z6KDnl0B]
Philadelphia 76ers veteran Mike Scott is one of the more popular players on the team’s roster. He is personable to the fans and he has an electric personality.
However, his performance on the floor was not up to their standards in the 2019-20 season. He then suffered a knee injury in the bubble and it was a tough time all around for him.
After shooting 41.2% from deep with the Sixers after being acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers at the 2019 deadline, the percentage dropped to 36.9% in 2020. After shedding some weight in the offseason, he is looking to bounce back in this upcoming season.
“I worked on my body a lot,” Scott said. “I had some knee problems in the bubble and I think it came from, I think I was a little bit too heavy and trying to ramp it up and put so much pressure on my body. I’m coming back 10 pounds lighter, still want to lose more weight. The older you get, the less you need to weigh, so that might help with the knee problems.”
Scott will be playing under former coach Doc Rivers who also coached him with the Clippers. He shot 39.1% from deep in LA, but he only averaged 4.8 points and his play was sporadic.
“When I was with the Clippers, I just didn’t play well,” Scott explained. “I don’t think I played well last year either, but when I was with Doc, I don’t know, [maybe] it was the fit, system, you can say that, but also when it’s time to go out there and play, you have to do your job. I didn’t feel like I did it and I came here. I definitely want to get back to being more consistent.”
Having been in the league for eight seasons now, the goal for him is to find some consistency and really figure out his role on this new team.
“Taking that next level and for me, at this point of my career, just being more consistent,” he added. “Easier said than done, just continue to put the work in. Big thing for me is keeping my body right and keeping that weight down. Yeah, I feel good.”
The hope is now that the Sixers added other shooters to the roster, there won’t be as much pressure on him to be the one shooter to step up and provide space for the team. They relied so much on him to space the floor for Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid so the less pressure he will have combined with the weight loss should help him a lot.
“Kenny Atkinson used to always tell me, once your body’s feeling good, once your body’s right, everything else will come,” he finished. “Getting back to making sure the body’s right, making sure I’m getting my shots, and just going out there doing your job. We have the personnel now with floor spacing and playing out on the perimeter, ball movement, same kind of offense I used to play in Atlanta, so getting back to that I feel like will be great for me.” [lawrence-related id=39997,39994,39991]