Tag: Nick Nurse

Nick Nurse gives update on De’Anthony Melton as Sixers move forward

Nick Nurse gives an update on De’Anthony Melton as the Philadelphia 76ers look to move forward.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers had De’Anthony Melton active in Game 3 against the New York Knicks on Thursday for the first time in this series, but he did not play. Coach Nick Nurse was unable to find a spot to throw him out there.

Nurse is in a tough position with Melton. Obviously, Melton can help and the Sixers will need him as they move forward, but it’s tough to throw him out there in the middle of a physical playoff series. Especially, when considering his bad back.

“Pretty good,” Nurse said of Melton’s back. “I really think it’s a day-by-day thing and the schedule, his schedule, is kinda-they kinda got him paired up with kind of our schedule. Even though he’s not playing and stuff so they kinda get him on the court when we play and get him and then they rest him the next day and then they work him again the days were working like today.”

He has played only seven games since the calendar turned to 2024 and Nurse has already set up a rotation for this series. It’s unfortunate for Melton, but at this point, Nurse has to do what’s best for the Sixers.

“So he’s OK,” Nurse added. “I mean, he’s been cleared to play, right? I would say it still has to be I mean—I love him, but it’s just—it seems like such a difficult circumstance. It’s been so long and it’s so intense and it’s whatever, but we’re around there on making a decision on that. Thinking about it, I guess.”

It will be interesting to see if Melton gets a turn in Game 4 on Sunday against the Knicks.

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Nick Nurse discusses Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey tandem for Sixers

Coach Nick Nurse discusses the Joel Embiid-Tyrese Maxey tandem for the Philadelphia 76ers.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers will go as far as Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey take them. The star duo have been terrific in this Round 1 series with the New York Knicks which Philadelphia currently trails 2-1.

Embiid is averaging 37.7 points while Maxey is at 31.0 points per game through the first three contests. The two of them have kept Philadelphia in this series and have overcome a lot of adversity to get the Sixers on the board in the playoffs.

Coach Nick Nurse has seen the two of them continue to grow in his first season as coach of the Sixers and is looking to them to lead the way.

“I know they’re a good tandem,” said Nurse. “They’re both really great people, they both care a lot, and they’re both superstars, right? So they’re in kind of that boat together a little bit. After watching the tape again this morning (from Game 3), Tyrese is starting to do some stuff now. He’s really directing traffic. It kind of hit me today how much he was insisting on people getting to place, and I think Joel’s helped him with that — kind of co-leading.”

Embiid and Maxey are the obvious leaders of this group. Embiid is looking to get Philadelphia over the hump in the Eastern Conference. Maxey is looking to continue to grow as a leader and build on his current stardom with a strong playoff run.

After games, one can see Embiid and Maxey having chats in the locker room. The two of them will continue to talk things out and try and get the Sixers moving forward. Sometimes, Kyle Lowry will join them for their chats as well. That helps in the leadership department.

“Kyle helps him, too,” Nurse finished. “Kyle’s obviously been that kind of guy for his whole life, right? And I think they’re doing a good job with some leadership stuff. Probably what they’re talking about is what we can do better as a team.”

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Buddy Hield received conversation from Nick Nurse about playing time

Philadelphia 76ers guard Buddy Hield received a conversation from Nick Nurse about playing time.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers needed a spark in Game 3 of their Round 1 series with the New York Knicks on Thursday. Coach Nick Nurse made the decision early to go with Cam Payne in the second quarter amid the continued struggles of Buddy Hield.

Through three games, Hield is shooting just 1-for-7 from the floor and has missed all four of his 3-pointers. Nurse turned to Payne in the second quarter and he had eight points in that frame and had 11 for the game. Hield only played four minutes in the win.

With that being said, Hield is a proven shooter in this league. Nurse will certainly give him another look. Now, it’s just about understanding what the team needs at the moment.

“I think that it’s obviously not easy for him,” said Nurse on Friday. “I’ve said to you guys I really like him. He loves to play. It’s killing him not to be out there, etc. and that is the conversation. I gotta say to him ‘Listen, I have to—my job is to make decisions that’s best for the team.’”

Shooters are streaky. There will be times when a shooter can’t miss and others when it feels like that guy can’t buy a basket. It happens. In this moment, Nurse is saying to Hield that he still believes in him, but he has to do what’s best for the Sixers to win games.

Game 4 is another opportunity for Hield to bounce back and get going in his playoff.

“Some nights, some days, some series, whatever, it doesn’t work out for certain guys,” Nurse added. “He’s not alone there and I needed a spark from somebody and we got it. Next game’s a new day. You never know how things are gonna roll so you have to stay ready.”

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Nick Nurse addresses Joel Embiid’s Bell’s Palsy, chippy play from Game 3

Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse addresses Joel Embiid’s Bell’s Palsy as well as the chippiness from the Game 3 win.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers came away with a pivotal, 125-114, Game 3 win over the New York Knicks on Thursday thanks to the heroics of Joel Embiid. The big fella put up 50 points on 13-for-19 shooting and 19-for-21 from the free-throw line.

Afterward, he discussed dealing with Bell’s Palsy which is affecting the muscles on the left side of his face. He admitted it has been tough for him to see at times. That means he is battling through not only that issue, but also is still recovering from the meniscus injury in his left knee.

Coach Nick Nurse was repeatedly asked about Embiid’s eye issue in the past, but Embiid wanted it to remain private, so Nurse respected his wishes. Now that it’s out in the open, Nurse addressed the issue.

“So basically, there’s kind of the daily check in on him,” Nurse said on Friday. “Just to make sure if he’s available or not and that’s kinda always the answer that I’m trying to get to. Obviously, he kinda had this — I kinda consider a personal thing and I just was always just wondering where he was and, obviously, you know it’s affecting him, but not to the point where he can’t see and he can’t play.”

To Embiid’s credit, he is putting his body on the line at the moment for the city of Philadelphia and wants to push through to lead the Sixers. Nurse waits for the daily updates from the medical team.

“That’s where I’m always at,” Nurse continued. “There’s a lot of other people working to see where they’re at and they gotta get the information to me. He’s obviously dealing with a lot, but he’s obviously playing through it.”

Considering Embiid’s dealing with all that and still dropping 50 points in a playoff game, Nurse was impressed: His eyes grew wide and he said “absolutely” when asked about that.

On the flip side, there was a great deal of chippiness in Game 3. Embiid was called for a flagrant-one foul in the first quarter when he grabbed Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson’s leg when Embiid was in an awkward position on the floor. One could have argued it was a flagrant-two and should have led to an ejection.

As a coach, Nurse understands the stakes as the series continues to grow more physical.

“I think about every time these two teams play each other — regular season or playoffs — it’s a rivalry, man,” Nurse stated. “It’s intense. It’s got history. It’s physical. Now, it’s the playoffs on top of it, right? As far as did I say ‘Hey calm down’? No. I think they were kinda isolated incidents. It seemed like they happened right on top of each other there for a bit. They just happened, but it’s physical, man. You never know when there’s gonna be a real physical play in that game. It just so happened to be early.”

Game 4 is Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia.

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Nick Nurse talks rallying from down 0-2, how Sixers can beat Knicks

Coach Nick Nurse discusses rallying from an 2-0 deficit and what the Philadelphia 76ers have to do to beat the New York Knicks.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers are in a tough position as their first-round series with the New York Knicks shifts to the Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers are down 2-0, and they have never rallied from that deficit to win a playoff series.

Yet, the Sixers remain confident. Joel Embiid guaranteed Philadelphia would win this series after the heartbreaking Game 2 loss, and the Sixers follow his lead.

Coach Nick Nurse has been in this position before. His Toronto Raptors trailed the Milwaukee Bucks 2-0 in the 2019 Eastern Conference finals before the Raptors rallied to win the series and go on to win a title.

“I did briefly mention it,” Nurse said of sharing that run with this Sixers group. “Like I’ve been here before. Let’s go.”

However, Nurse’s approach to Game 3 doesn’t change compared to the past.

“I hate to be really boring here, but not unlike any other game,” Nurse said of his approach to Game 3. “Even regular season — you take what’s there in front of you. The only thing that’s different is you’re playing the same team. You’re taking right there what’s in front of you. You’re looking at adjustments. You’re making your best guestimates on what you think they may go to.”

For the Sixers to get on the board on Thursday, Nurse and his staff are looking at ways to combat the Knicks. Philadelphia did a great job in Game 2 of putting itself in the right positions to succeed, but didn’t get the job done. Now, Nurse is looking to overcome any potential adjustments in Game 3.

“A couple things that kinda start working for them and they say ‘Hey man, we can maybe exploit this a little more’ and you say ‘OK, in case that happens, let’s get ready for it’,” Nurse continued. “We gotta do the same. We’re looking at where the pieces go and how they fit and what can we change around it. Can we continue to get good looks and stuff like that?”

The Sixers may be down 2-0, but this is a very talented bunch. Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have made it look rather easy on the offensive end. If Philadelphia can get a scoring boost from Tobias Harris, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Buddy Hield, then Philadelphia probably has a win or two under its belt.

“You show them the film,” Nurse finished. “You walk through the stuff. You walk through a couple things that have been problems. You walk through a couple of their adjustments. Things we didn’t see before the series started and get ready to go. The only difference is you got a lot more time and it’s the same team.”

Philadelphia has had two days to prepare for Game 3. On the flip side, so have the Knicks. Now is the time for the Sixers to get on the board in this series and bring the fight to New York.

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Nick Nurse thinks Sixers have good ideas to get Kelly Oubre Jr. going

Nick Nurse thinks the Philadelphia 76ers have some good ideas to get Kelly Oubre Jr. going in the NBA Playoffs.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers are down 2-0 in their first-round series with the New York Knicks as play shifts to the Wells Fargo Center. In order for the Sixers to get on the board in this series, they need others to step up around Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.

One of Philadelphia’s more important role players is Kelly Oubre Jr. The veteran out of Kansas has been a very nice addition to the roster. He averaged 15.4 points and 5.0 rebounds while playing in 68 games in his first season with the Sixers. Considering he is on the minimum, his production has been a steal.

Through the first two playoff games with the Knicks, however, he’s averaging 7 points while shooting 35.7% from the floor. The Sixers need to find a way to unlock him — along with Tobias Harris and Buddy Hield.

“I think especially after Game 1, you’re saying, ‘Geez, we need more out of Nico (Batum) and Kelly and Tobias.’ The list goes on and on, right?” said coach Nick Nurse at practice on Wednesday. “I think we’ve got some good ideas to get Kelly going a little bit. I think Tobias has been really excellent, man. He’s played really hard. He’s guarded really well. He’s rebounded the ball. He’s going to have some opportunities, I think, that we’ve seen and he can probably take advantage of it.”

Give Harris and Oubre credit as the main defenders on Knicks star Jalen Brunson; the two have used their length and size to fluster him. However, Philadelphia also needs them to provide something on offense — especially Oubre, who can make a difference in games such as these with his athleticism.

Then, there’s Hield who has two points through two games and is 0-for-3 from deep.

“I know Buddy hasn’t done much but again, he’s still a guy that he just hits one and you never know what’s going to happen next, right?” Nurse explained. “I think he had some opportunities that we missed him on the other night, too, where he was available to have some easier catch-and-shoots. About three of them, I thought we could’ve fired it out to him when they kind of lost him.”

The Sixers must defeat the Knicks in Game 3. No team has ever rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win a series in the NBA playoffs. Getting Oubre, Harris and Hield going on offense would be a big help.

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Sixers react to NBA’s Last 2 Minute report pointing out missed calls

The Philadelphia 76ers react to the Last 2 Minute report pointing out all of the missed calls in their Game 2 loss.

CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers were on the wrong end of some hugely important missed calls in their 104-101 Game 2 loss to the New York Knicks on Monday. The Sixers were up, 101-99, with 27.1 seconds left and the Knicks got away with a number of missed calls.

Per the NBA’s Last 2 Minute report, which points out calls made by officiating in the final two minutes of a game, there were missed foul calls on New York’s Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart on the chaotic inbounds play. The report stated both should have been called for fouls on Tyrese Maxey.

The report also stated coach Nick Nurse should have been granted a timeout. After the loss, Nurse was adamant that he had called one, but was ignored.

For Maxey, the Last 2 Minute report brings some peace, but he also just wants to focus on Game 3 on Thursday.

“I guess you could say peace for sure, but I think what it is for us is it gives us is reassurance,” said Maxey at practice on Wednesday. “We gotta use that and put it to the fuel for the fire. It is what it is. We’re down 2-0 and if we dwell on it, we’ll be down 0-3, but we can’t dwell on it. We gotta go out there and do what we’re capable of doing. Go out there and execute the game plan and win two games at home.”

Nurse took a different approach. He wanted nothing to do with Game 2 after a certain time.

“The clock hit midnight after that game and I moved on,” he said succinctly. “I always give it until midnight and move on. Get ready for the next one.”

If the Sixers can win on Thursday, it’s a 2-1 series. That would give Philadelphia some momentum with another game at home on Sunday. Game 3 is essentially a must-win for the Sixers. No team in NBA history has ever rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win the series.

“At the end of the day, after Thursday, if we win that game, it’ll be 2-1 and as close as a series can be,” Maxey added. “Somebody has to be up 2-1, you know what I mean? It’s gonna be a dog fight.”

Tip off on Thursday is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT.

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Sixers feeling confident they can beat Knicks despite 0-2 series deficit

The Philadelphia 76ers are feeling confident they can beat the New York Knicks despite the 0-2 series deficit.

NEW YORK — After two games of this first-round playoff series, the Philadelphia 76ers trail the New York Knicks 2-0. The Sixers have given themselves a chance in both games, but they were not able to get the job done.

However, the Sixers are feeling confident. They’re down, but they’re not out. Coach Nick Nurse will make sure this team continues to fight, scratch and claw for everything. The Knicks held serve at home. Now the Sixers must do the same as the series shifts to South Philadelphia.

“We played really well, did a lot of great things,” Nurse said after Game 2. “Played better in a bunch of areas tonight. It’s obviously difficult when it’s so close and you kind of give it away at the end. It’s obviously difficult in these circumstances, right? It just makes the series a little longer.”

Joel Embiid, who had 34 points in the Game 2 loss, guaranteed the Sixers would win this series. For that to happen, Philadelphia will need to match the intensity and the physicality the Knicks play with. The Sixers did so in Game 2, but came up short.

They will have to be ready to match it again in Game 3 on Thursday.

“Keep fighting,” Nic Batum said. “We showed that in a tough arena with a big crowd, we nearly had a chance to be up by 2-0 right now. It didn’t go our way twice, but we did have a chance to win those two games so all we have to do is keep fighting. Now we go home, it’ll be another big fight. Just go out there and keep playing.”

On top of the fact that they were right there in both games, the Sixers have the two best players in this series: Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. New York has won the first two games of this series, but it’s the first to four. If the Sixers continue to get this type of production out of their star duo, they will be in great shape.

“I thought there were stretches of the game where I didn’t see him being so aggressive, but certainly the last 15 minutes, he was really chasing it down, turning on the jets, slamming on the brakes — all the things he can do time and time again,” Nurse said of Maxey. “So I thought he was great when it really mattered.”

Game 3 is on Thursday from the Wells Fargo Center.

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Sixers will continue to follow Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey as series shifts

The Philadelphia 76ers will continue to lean on star leaders Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey as the series now shifts to Philadelphia.

NEW YORK — The Philadelphia 76ers are returning to the Wells Fargo Center down 2-0 in this first-round playoff series with the New York Knicks. They had their chances in both games 1 and 2, but were not able to walk away with the victory.

The positives for Philadelphia are the play of star duo Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. In the Game 2 loss on Monday, the duo combined for 69 points, 19 rebounds and 16 assists. They were able to have that type of production despite Embiid dealing with a variety of injuries and Maxey dealing with an illness.

As the series shifts to the Wells Fargo Center, the Sixers continue to lean on their star leaders, starting with Embiid.

“Very good,” coach Nick Nurse said of Embiid. “I thought he was excellent. Really outstanding.”

It is admirable to see Embiid play as well as he did despite the obvious pain that he’s in. Not only is the knee bothering him, but he was hit in the eye in Game 1 and is dealing with that as well. He has had a couple of dominant games to start this series for Philadelphia.

“It’s all mental,” Embiid added. “Obviously, it’s not the best-case scenario, but I’m good. No excuses. Play good or play bad, got to find a way to win.”

Then, there’s Maxey who fought through an illness that required him to have an IV. He delivered 35 points, including 15 coming in the fourth. It appeared his heroics would be enough before the unfortunate final 30 seconds for Philadelphia.

“He was ballin,” said Tobias Harris of Maxey. “That’s who he is and he made huge shot after huge shot for us. A game like that, you wanna get a victory for those types of performances and him just fighting through sickness and being there for the group. We’ll be fine. We just gotta keep our composure, stay level-headed, and be ready.”

The Sixers are down 2-0 and their prospects look rather bleak, but Philadelphia will lean on Embiid and Maxey to get back into this series. Being back in the friendly confines of the Wells Fargo Center on Thursday should help.

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Did Nick Nurse really call timeout before the Knicks’ miraculous Game 2 sequence? The 76ers coach might have a case

Nick Nurse might actually be right here.

Look, I don’t foresee the Philadelphia 76ers winning the grievance over officiating that they’re planning on filing after the Game 2 loss to the New York Knicks. There’s no way the NBA changes anything to cause a firestorm.

But I do think Sixers coach Nick Nurse might have a case to complain about not being granted a timeout during that wild sequence in which the Knicks grabbed the ball back while down two and Donte DiVincenzo hit a stunning three.

While Tyrese Maxey was on the floor, it appeared he might have had possession of the ball for a second while Nurse signaled for a timeout. It was QUICK, but check it out:

Nurse had this to say after the game:

Again, I doubt anything will come of this, but it’s worth noting!