The Philadelphia 76ers got some big contributions from their big-money guys like Tobias Harris and Al Horford, but they don’t get out of Sacramento with a win over the Kings without a little help from the bench.
Alec Burks had 17 points off the bench and he knocked down three of his six attempts from deep to make the expected big impact off the bench. Raul Neto, who had been pushed out of the rotation a bit, had 16 points with 14 coming in the third quarter. They both filled in big roles to help the Sixers hold off the feisty Kings 125-108 for their first road win since January 20.
“Huge,” acknowledged Horford. “Alec when he turns it up like that, you just feel like everything he shoots he’ll make. That’s what I’ve quickly learned with him. With Raul, it’s just good to see him get an opportunity, take advantage of it and really show what he can do. He can shoot the ball, he can create. I just love the way that he played and the way that we were playing when he was out there.”
The 17 points and 3-for-6 shooting from deep is exactly the type of production the Sixers expected from Burks. He is a guy who can bring that instant offense off the bench and it gives coach Brett Brown options–Burks, Furkan Korkmaz, Matisse Thybulle, etc.–in his lineup. He was averaging a career-high 16.1 points with the Golden State Warriors so he has that type of ability to put the ball in the basket.
“That’s what you’re always hoping,” said Brown. “To think that’s what you do every single night is ambitious. We want to get that more than we do. It’s easy for me to say that. I have to help him sometimes – put him in situations, make sure I get him on the court, time and the minutes. It’s a judgment thing. Sometimes when people aren’t going, you’re going to go to Furk or you’re going to let Matisse fly up and down and tap into Matisse’s defense. Therefore, there are options we have, but by and large, that’s what Alec does. That’s why he was brought in and tonight, we saw why.”
Neto was a big surprise. The veteran point guard was essentially pushed out of the rotation with the acquisition of Burks, the presence of Josh Richardson, and the emergence of Shake Milton. However, injuries can change a lot of things and Brown called upon Neto and he gave a huge spark in the third when the Kings made a push.
“I thought that Raul came in the game and had some big moments in the third period. I think he had 14 points in the third period,” Brown added. “I thought he played really well.”
Neto also caught the eye of Harris who said he was not surprised at all by what he did.
“He gave us a huge spark,” said Harris. “In the third quarter, they kind of cut it to eight points. He was out there – made two big threes, got to the mid-range, got to the basket. He was big for us. He’s a great player. That’s no surprise to any of us in here. He was just another guy who stepped up for us and was just steady through the whole game.”
The Sixers will need more of this when they head to The Bay on Saturday to face Stephen Curry and the Warriors looking for a 2-2 road trip. [lawrence-related id=27213,27184,27176]