Teague Fatigues Sixers in 113-103 Hawks Victory

By Sean Kennedy

There are a lot of things to like about the Tony Wroten experience, but at this point of his young career, one of them does not include pick-and-roll defense. Filling in once again for an injured Michael Carter-Williams, the 20-year-old Wroten had all sorts of trouble defending Jeff Teague in the half court, as Teague went off for a career-high 33 points and 10 assists in what became an easy Hawks win.

Aside from one stretch in the second quarter where he turned the ball over a few times (contributing to the Sixers lead going into halftime), Teague was on fire, carving up the defense to get to the basket and find open teammates on the perimeter. As usual, the Sixers were burned behind the arc, particularly by DeMarre Carroll and Kyle Korver, who combined to go 8-13 from downtown. The Sixers defensive letdown, combined with six turnovers in the third quarter alone, allowed Atlanta to pull away in a game that was there for the taking for Philadelphia.

It wasn’t all bad for Wroten as he did a nice job offensively, looking much more controlled in running the team as a starting point guard. He finished the game with 22 points on 9-19 shooting and 6 assists, as well as one standout play where he drove the lane through traffic and looked like he would lay it in, but hung in the air for a bit and threw it down with two hands. Evan Turner continued to inflict death by a thousand paper cuts on the opponent with his effective mid-range jumpers. He finished with a team-high 27 points, although he did have 7 turnovers along with that.

Box Score

Notable Observations: 

• The Spencer Hawes to Evan Turner backdoor pass was working incredibly well all game long. Hawes probably doesn’t get nearly enough credit for what a good passer he is because it’s not typically the skill set you need from your big man. But with his ability to stretch the floor as the team’s best three-point shooter this season (!) and his skill in finding open cutters, Hawes does a lot to open up things for a typically stagnant Sixers half-court offense.
• Interesting move from the Hawks perspective was Paul Millsap coming off the bench for the first time this season. Coach Mike Budenholzer might be trying to provide some punch off a second unit that has struggled this season, but it’s an odd move considering Millsap is one of their three best players. Millsap struggled in the role in against the Sixers, recording just 8 points and 4 boards. It’s something to keep an eye on to see how it sticks for Atlanta.
• Aside from Korver, a couple of prominent ex-Sixers were in action for the Hawks as fans got a chance to see Lou Williams and Elton Brand out on the court. It was Sweet Lou’s first game back from ACL surgery so it was encouraging to see him out there looking like his old self, using that explosive first step to get to the basket on a couple occasions. As for the Old School Chevy, Brand’s career appears to be winding down as he’s lost whatever bounce in his step he still had when leaving the Sixers.
• Hollis Thompson had the best sequence of his career in the fourth quarter, hitting a three, then making a steal on the other end to finish with a breakaway flush. After the ensuing Atlanta timeout, he received an energetic Evan Turner jump bump for his troubles. It was the first time Thompson has ever looked like an NBA player to my eyes, so we’ll see if he can build off of that at all going forward.

Tanking Implications:

Losing a game they had a chance to win bodes well from a tanking perspective but there were also some positive signs from some of the young guys. For the second straight game, Wroten looked capable of running an offense; if he could ever improve the consistency on his outside shot, watch out league. The pick-and-roll defense will come with more experience, it’s very difficult to defend at the NBA level when it’s run correctly. The flash of hope from Thompson and a nice shooting performance from Darius Morris (3-4 from three) were also positive signs from the Sixers young guys off the bench. 4/5 tanks.