Sixers Down Disinterested Pistons

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Like many a casual fan Wednesday night, the Pistons looked like they might have their minds on filling out their NCAA brackets rather than anything going on with the NBA. Coming off a grueling win over Memphis Tuesday night, and playing without forward Greg Monroe, Detroit simply looked disinterested against the Sixers for much of the game. One might have termed their effort ’embarrassing’.

Of course, that description stems from comments now-coach Stan Van Gundy made about the Sixers while speaking at the Sloan Conference last season.

#Sixers officially hit the over in Vegas with their 16th win of the season. End the year 3-1 against Stan Van Gundy. pic.twitter.com/91iWQpBLpH

— Mike Lederer (@MikeLederer) March 19, 2015

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsAfter taking over as coach of the Pistons this year, Van Gundy has lost to those Sixers 3 times in 4 games this season. I got her number, Stan. How do you like them apples? The Sixers prevailed Wednesday primarily thanks to a strong defensive effort, holding Detroit to 33% shooting and recording 12 steals and 10 blocks. Here’s what awaited the Pistons whenever they tried to come around the basket:

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Offensively, the Sixers were led by Ish Smith, who finished with 15 points, 8 assists, and 3 steals while making his second start for the club. Smith is a very crafty ball handler and utilized some great hesitation moves to create driving lanes, finishing himself or finding a teammate for an open shot after the defense collapsed. While his poor outside shoot precludes Smith from ever being a long-term answer, his inclusion in the lineup undoubtedly helps the offense flow better and likely helps the offensive development of the other young guys.

Jason Richardson finally broke out of his shooting slump, hitting 3-5 threes and finishing with 14 points. He also had a sweet dish to find a sprinting Nerlens Noel for an alley-oop:

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Noel had a nice game himself, recording 11 points and 3 blocks before leaving the game after tweaking his ankle. Luckily, the team said he could have returned if he was needed and he should be good to go Friday.

While sticking it to Stan Van Gundy is great and all, the Sixers’ recent .500 play is wrecking havoc on their lottery implications. Not only are the Sixers now 1.5 games ahead of both New York and Minnesota, they’re also just 1 game back in the win column of the Lakers. If the Sixers pass LA in the standings, not only does that hurt their own pick, but they can just about kiss any chance of getting the Lakers’ first-rounder this offseason goodbye. Friday’s game against New York and Sunday against the Lakers both loom extremely large from a tanking perspective.

Still, for one night it was just good to watch a fun win and see Van Gundy squirm in disgust once again on the sidelines. You can’t lose sight of the small stuff.