By Sean Kennedy
Coming off arguably his best game as a professional, Sixers fans were excited to see what Michael Carter-Williams would do for an encore. So naturally, it was learned Thursday that MCW did not travel with the team in order to remain in Philadelphia and receive treatment on his knee, because we can’t have nice things. The fact that MCW played the latter stages of the Magic game with a swollen knee makes that outstanding performance all the more incredible. The only silver lining is the return of Tony Wroten: starter, an experience that was both incredibly entertaining and effective when Carter-Williams missed a few games with a bruised heel earlier this season.
Friday’s opponent will be the Charlotte Bobcats, a team that veered against the curve this offseason by signing Al Jefferson in the hope of going from abysmal to not quite that terrible. So far, so good, as the Bobcats sit at 8-11, which is practically good enough for home-court advantage in the rotting quagmire that is the Eastern Conference. However, the early improvement is mainly due to new head coach Steve Clifford living up to his reputation as a defensive expert. Clifford has Charlotte playing as the third-best defensive team in the NBA this season, although they’ll be hard-pressed to maintain that level of play with their own hyphenated young stud currently sidelined. Michael Kidd-Gilcrist is out 4-6 weeks with a fractured hand suffered Tuesday, and as the team’s best defender, his absence leaves a huge hole on the perimeter that the Sixers may be able to exploit.
As for that Charlotte offense, oh boy, I’ve seen kid’s soccer games with better spacing. Despite Al Jefferson doing his usual commendable work in the post, the Bobcats sport the second-worst offense in the league, mainly because they have absolutely no one to stretch the floor. Josh McRoberts is the only regular even average from beyond the arc at 35.4%, and guys like Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson, and Ramon Sessions are all slashers that struggle to find room to operate with Al Jefferson anchored down low. However, if any team can pull a team out of its shooting doldrums, it’s the Sixers, so watch Kemba Walker go ahead and hit five threes.
It’s tough to predict how these two teams will match up with both squads missing players key to their central identity. Charlotte is pretty much the ideal opponent for the Sixers and if Philadelphia can build an early lead and force the Bobcats to speed up their pace of play, they have a chance. But without their best player, it’s tough to build too strong an argument in favor of the Sixers. Bobcats win in a close, sloppy game from both sides.
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