Sixers’ Turnovers Mar Upset Bid

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Golden State 89, Philadelphia 84 – Box Score

With the NBA extending the All-Star break this season to a full week and a half, the last thing the Sixers wanted was to interrupt a solid recent run of play with a no-show in their final game of the first half. Fortunately for the team and fans alike, the team provided plenty of reasons to be encouraged during the next 10 days without Sixers basketball.

Facing the best team in the West, the Sixers looked early on as though they were poised to pull off the shocking upset. The defense really needed to show up against Golden State’s All-Star backcourt of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Philly did a great job on that end of limited the pair from hitting too many long-distance shots, what the Sixers broadcast dubbed cannonballs (get it, splash brothers). Curry and Thompson combined to shoot just 32% shooting on the game (4-18 from three). Curry did manage to drop 20 points, but took 20 shots to get there and certainly wasn’t having his best night. Overall, the 89 points on the season represented the Warriors’ second-fewest total on the season.

Everything crested for the Sixers during approximately a 2-minute period toward the end of the first quarter. The Sixers were vigorously attacking the rim, dunking everything in sight, and things crested with a play from K.J. McDaniels that got the crowd off its feet and threw twitter into a frenzy. It was the night of McDaniels’ 22nd birthday, and he decided to serve himself a piece of cake and blow out the candles with this Tracy McGrady-esque throwdown:

Sam Hinkie happened to be in the broadcast booth when McDaniels pulled that off, and as he said, ‘That is not part of [their] player development prorgram’.

Unfortunately, the Sixers’ defensive prowess and penchant for highlight-worthy plays did not carry over to when they had the ball the rest of the game, as they rarely even managed to hold on to it. They committed 27 turnovers, including 9 in the third quarter alone. Four of those giveaways came during a 9-0 Golden State run which allowed the Warriors to take control of the game. Tim Frazier, who had a very respectable 3.2 assist-to-turnover ratio through his first 2 professional games, saw the wheels come off with a game-high 7 turnovers. With the Sixers tossing the ball away left and right, the Warriors’ lead ballooned to as much as 18 points in the 4th quarter.

Still, fans can take solace over the long layoff in the team’s ‘never say die’ attitude quickly becoming a trademark of the group. Robert Covington, who missed a large portion of the second half with a sprained pinkie, proved he only needs 9 fingers to be the best shooter on the team, hitting a three immediately open re-entering the game. Bobby Buckets finished with a game-high 21 points on 7-15 shooting (4-10 3PT), 8 rebounds, and 3 steals. The Sixers trimmed the deficit all the way down to 4 points in the final minute, but simply ran out of time to complete the comeback.

Although the Sixers have been playing well the last couple weeks, the extended break will give Michael Carter-Williams a chance to rest his sprained toe. Both he and the organization have become increasingly concerned with the severity of the injury; hopefully, the additional week and a half rest will be enough to see him back onto the court. As fun as it was to see JaKarr running the back-up point or Frazier tallying double-digit assists in his professional debut, MCW is the guy they want to continue to develop.

Other Game Notes:

• Fans finally reached the outer slums of Holliswood, as Thompson’s scorching hot streak came to a screeching halt against Golden State. The 2nd-year wing was 0-9 from the field for 0 points and 4 turnovers; hopefully, it was just a one-game blip and Thompson gets back on track after the break.
• Matched up against one of the best defensive big men in the NBA in Andrew Bogut, Nerlens Noel had a nice outing with 11 points on 5-8 shooting and 7 rebounds. Noel tenaciously attacked the offensive glass, even throwing down a left-handed slam on one putback which was the first time I’ve seen such a move from him. It’s getting to the point where these types of performances are becoming more and more the norm; he’s certainly earned his spot as a Rising Star in this league.