Sixers Win in Embiid and Saric’s Debut

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

SIXERS WIN! pic.twitter.com/cC8bw1ZSZw

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 5, 2016

Philadelphia 92, Boston 89 – Box Score

More than two years since they were, two Philadelphia 76ers lottery picks made their long-awaited NBA debuts Tuesday night, and Joel Embiid and Dario Saric did not disappoint Sixers fans.

After talking before the game about how his heart was beating out of his chest, Embiid clearly had some nerves during his first 4-minute stint on the court. He went 0-3 from the floor, all on mid-range jumpers, and looked every bit as rusty as you would expect for a 22-year-old who hadn’t played an organized basketball game in over two years.

Checking back in toward the end of the first quarter, though, Embiid looked much more settled into the game. His first points in a NBA uniform came on a pretty move down low against Tyler Zeller, giving the Celtics big man a little shake and showing the soft touch on a short fadeaway.

Joel Embiid with his first career points. https://t.co/3VnF45HT6e

— Jake Hyman (@JakeHymanTTP) October 4, 2016

JoJo would connect on his next shot as well, a long 2-pointer with his foot just on the three-point line. The outside shot is clearly going to be a weapon for the 7’2″ center, as Amir Johnson even fouled Embiid on a hard close-out to the 3-point-line. Embiid finished with 6 points on 2-6 shooting (2-2 from the line). A guy that tall who can score on the post, while possessing an outside shot opponents have to respect, is the sort of offensive package scouts talk about when they mention Embiid has the potential to break the game.

The one glaring weakness for Embiid was his inability to deal with frequent double teams Boston sent at him. He made some poor decisions, either backing himself into a corner or holding on to the ball too long, which led to his 3 turnovers. For one thing, it’s very encouraging that the Celtics felt the need to send double teams at him already. It’s also the first time he’s ever experienced NBA-caliber defenses. Combine the fact with the long layoff and Embiid should surely improve in this area given more experience.

Defensively, Embiid was solid, recording two blocks based on his ridiculous length alone. His ability to graze this shot is a play only a few guys in the league can even make.

JO SAYS NO https://t.co/v7a6g2b4rf

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 4, 2016

As for Embiid’s rookie teammate, Dario Saric was very steady in his debut, looking like a guy who has plenty of experience playing professional ball overseas. The most promising sign was how smooth Saric’s outside shot look, as he showed by draining a triple on his very first touch of the game.

https://twitter.com/xylondimoff/status/783444853430640640

Saric would hit 2 of 3 threes, and 4 of 6 shots overall, on his way to 10 points in 18 minutes. He also displayed the passing which drew the recent Simmons comparisons, tallying 2 assists, one on this nice feed underneath to Nerlens Noel.

Dario slips one past the D to @NerlensNoel3 for the @StateFarm Assist Of The Night. https://t.co/TbljWXKVHP

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 5, 2016

Although his passing highlights are often Simmons-esque, Saric is not in the same class as a ball-handler. A few attempts to drive to the hoop contributed to his team-high-tying 4 turnovers. Like with Embiid, Saric is going to have an adjustment period to the NBA game, so that area should improve for the Croatian star.

Now, as for the actual game, the Boston starters beat up on the Sixers, particularly with big free agent acquisition Al Horford (8 points, 8 rebounds) a +19 in his 15 minutes of action. However, once the teams turned the game over to the benches for good in the second half, the Sixers took control. Philadelphia went on a 18-0 run early in the fourth quarter to seize the lead, with a big boost from an unexpected source.

Brandon Paul scored a game-high 15 points in just 13 minutes, knocking down 2 of 4 threes, and showing some good defensive chops with a pair of steals. Paul was far and away the best wing for the Sixers on the evening, and it will be interesting to see if he can keep it up and wrestle a roster spot away from the likes of Nik Stauskas or Hollis Thompson, both of whom were very bad against the Celtics. Brett Brown certainly seemed happy with Paul’s performance after the game.

#Sixers Brown on Paul: 'He just came in and was instant offense, lightning in a bottle.' Liked his energy.

— Tom Moore (@TomMoorePhilly) October 5, 2016

If Paul was to make the team with a continued strong training camp, he would be following a similar path to last season’s camp superstar, TJ McConnell, who drew the start Tuesday night with Jerryd Bayless nursing a wrist injury. McConnell was very good, dropping 13 points on 6-11 shooting, and firing off 4 assists, including a nice alley-oop to Noel, and a pretty feed in transition to Saric. I particularly enjoyed how he kept scoring even as the terrible Boston announcing team kept insisting he never shoots. McConnell has definitely cemented his roster spot with the team once again (sorry Cat Barber).

Other reserves who looked good on the contest included Sergio Rodriguez and Richaun Holmes. As hoped, Rodriguez (team-high 6 assists) brought that passing flair and playmaking ability the Sixers will badly need with Simmons out of commission. Rodriguez did a nice job penetrating the lane and kicking out to three-point shooters, and also showed great chemistry with Holmes in the pick-and-roll. The pair connected for a pair of buckets in the final minute to help keep the Celtics at bay, including this thunderous dunk by Richaun.

SHEESH RICHAUN 😳 https://t.co/UJBPbHNRlv

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 5, 2016

Holmes ended the night with 10 points and 4 rebounds in 12 minutes, looking tremendous in the process. It seems like Holmes’ destiny is to nicely cushion the blow whenever the inevitable Nerlens Noel trade goes down.

All in all, the Sixers are 1-0 in the preseason, Dario Saric definitely looks like he belongs, and Joel Embiid got through a professional basketball game healthy. Ben Simmons injury aside, it’s a good time to be a Sixers fan.