OT: Philadelphia 76ers: Taking Our Talents To The Offseason

[Embiid]

Crappy 2 losses in Miami...

 

[Jack Straw]

Covington is driving me crazy. I wonder if there’s any possibility that we’ll see a starting 5 of Fultz, JJ, Simmons, Saric, and Embiid. I don’t think RoCo’s defense would be missed enough to make up for his terrible offense.

 

[PHILOUDELPHIA]

Covington is driving me crazy. I wonder if there’s any possibility that we’ll see a starting 5 of Fultz, JJ, Simmons, Saric, and Embiid. I don’t think RoCo’s defense would be missed enough to make up for his terrible offense.

I would like to see Fultz down the stretch get him some game action. I think Cov would be best off the bench now.

 

[Jtown]

It would be hard to start fultz. It may be best to just sit him all year. If you have to weigh the pros and cons of him coming in at this point , i believe the cons far outweigh the pros at this point.

 

[Frickley]

Benching Cov is not an option.

 

[Jack Straw]

Benching Cov is not an option.

But how much of that offensive rating is a result of playing with Embiid, Simmons, JJ, and Saric? Because I really don't think he's contributing a whole lot to it himself.

 

[Ruck Over]

Last night might have been one of the few times I questioned Brett's coaching ability. Hinkie is the king, but Brett has been the crowned Prince in my eyes as far as #Strapazoid is concerned.

Last night, Dario started the game hot, then he took him out along with Ben and left JoJo and Cov in the game as he started going to his bench. That seems like a mistake. Hindsight, blah blah blah, but it seems to be happening where a guy is feeling it, and is subbed out instead of riding the hot streak. The 6ers offense is so finicky, really missing a gunner like Lou Williams.

Points are gonna be scored in basketball, especially the NBA unlike a few dreadful NCAA games a year that have a combined score lower than 70. I'm happy with Cov, he's starting to show warts as a starter though, thinking a little rest would do him good. He hasn't been right since taking that tumble and hurting his back.

 

[rkhum]

With teams at their complete peaks, I'd put the Sixers third in the city after the Eagles and Phillies.

Regarding the fans coming out of the woodwork after being a distant fourth is because the NBA is a whole other breed when it comes to winning. Since Iverson was here the Sixers have had 0% chance of winning anything and the attendance and following has followed accordingly.

Now that the Sixers have some premier talent (again, first time since Iverson) the fans are starting to flock back because they WILL have a chance to win championships. Embiid and Simmons are Elite type talents that everyone wants to see.

I was under the impression that Philly was one of the rare towns where it was Iggles, then Flyers with a sizable gap then the Phillies and dead last the 76ers.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

I was under the impression that Philly was one of the rare towns where it was Iggles, then Flyers with a sizable gap then the Phillies and dead last the 76ers.

I'd wager to guess you got that impression simply because the Sixers have been utter trash for the better part of a fifteen years.

 

[Frickley]

But how much of that offensive rating is a result of playing with Embiid, Simmons, JJ, and Saric? Because I really don't think he's contributing a whole lot to it himself.

The other four starters absolutely contribute to it, but so does he. Yes he is streaky, often frustrating to watch, and has some exploitable flaws, but no one else on the roster offers his combination of spacing and defense. Period.

 

[Jack Straw]

The other four starters absolutely contribute to it, but so does he. Yes he is streaky, often frustrating to watch, and has some exploitable flaws, but no one else on the roster offers his combination of spacing and defense. Period.

I think even calling him streaky is being kind at this point. He was hot the first month or so and has been consistently bad since. And while he probably does still stretch the defense, with the additions of JJ, Ersan, and Belinelli, and the Dario's emergence as a legit stretch-4, I don't know that Covington matters that much now. Also keep in mind that the Sixers defense is based on constant switching, so it's not like they stick him on the opponent's top scorer and ask him to be a shut down guy. I will admit that right now there may not be a better option but I don't see RoCo as a starter on a contending team.

 

[Jray42]

I was under the impression that Philly was one of the rare towns where it was Iggles, then Flyers with a sizable gap then the Phillies and dead last the 76ers.

It's the Eagles and then an enormous gap to everyone else

 

[Ruck Over]

I will admit that right now there may not be a better option but I don't see RoCo as a starter on a contending team.

I agree with you. RoCo should be this team's Andre Iguodala, a 6th or 7th man depending on match-ups, and consistently getting between 20-35 minutes a night.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

You guys think Joel is getting worn out?

 

[Jack Straw]

Could be. I think Simmons may be feeling it too. He's playing a ton of minutes and has never done this before.

 

[Frickley]

And while he probably does still stretch the defense, with the additions of JJ, Ersan, and Belinelli, and the Dario's emergence as a legit stretch-4, I don't know that Covington matters that much now.

Yikes. JJ and Dario, I can buy because they provide great offensive value, but Belinelli and Ersan are at best marginally more efficient than Covington. They are all within ~2% of each other from 3 this year. I'm sorry but Covington is multiple tiers above both as a player AINEC.

Also keep in mind that the Sixers defense is based on constant switching, so it's not like they stick him on the opponent's top scorer and ask him to be a shut down guy

Exactly. Covington's defensive value is not necessarily as a shutdown guy, but his versatility, length, help defense, and PnR defense are hugely valuable. JJ, Dario, Ersan, and Marco, on the other hand, are all defensive liabilities (Save for Ersan's God-like ability to take charges ).

Ultimately I do think that RoCo should drive less. He's not a good ball handler and a pretty poor finisher at the rim; teams closing out hard at him is a high percentage play. Still, to me there's a bigger issue. Even with Embiid and Simmons being awesome at a lot of things, this offense as a whole can still be a bit of a mess at times. Lots of turnovers and no perimeter guys capable of consistently creating their own shot or in PnR. When open shots aren't falling, it looks ugly.

Until they find a ball handler who can do those things (hopefully Fultz), it seems to me that RoCo's offensive weaknesses will seem more pronounced than they actually are. And even when he's missing, he still breaks even because his defense is outstanding.

 

[Big Poppa Puck]

I was under the impression that Philly was one of the rare towns where it was Iggles, then Flyers with a sizable gap then the Phillies and dead last the 76ers.

I'd say that. Football is football and that is king so Eagles are always #1. I'd say Flyers are #2 for the shear fact that even when they're bad they still have good attendance and you see a lot Flyers gear around. The Phillies and Sixers have ebs and flows. You can see tumbleweed at the games when they're bad, but when they're good they can easily jump to #2.

That's at least how I see it living here, but the Sixers are the only team in town I'm a fan of.

Then again I'm only 26 and so I've only seen the Iverson era, post-Iverson garbage and then now. And I only remember the Flyers being truly terrible once (2007) in that time span.

 

[Ruck Over]

You guys think Joel is getting worn out?

Not really. Players are gonna have less than stellar games occasionally. Last night's game, the refs seemed to be all over the place with some of the fouls. I'd say it was the early foul trouble (4 fouls before midway into the 3rd qtr) that attributed to his off game, plus teammates not pulling weight allowing the defense to focus on him.

If there was one thing that makes me think he's getting tired though, missed free throws, that caught me off guard as an unpleasant development.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

Not really. Players are gonna have less than stellar games occasionally. Last night's game, the refs seemed to be all over the place with some of the fouls. I'd say it was the early foul trouble (4 fouls before midway into the 3rd qtr) that attributed to his off game, plus teammates not pulling weight allowing the defense to focus on him.

If there was one thing that makes me think he's getting tired though, missed free throws, that caught me off guard as an unpleasant development.

It was less so of a remark specifically about last night but his March so far hasn't been typical JoJo.

 

[Jack Straw]

Yikes. JJ and Dario, I can buy because they provide great offensive value, but Belinelli and Ersan are at best marginally more efficient than Covington. They are all within ~2% of each other from 3 this year. I'm sorry but Covington is multiple tiers above both as a player AINEC.


Exactly. Covington's defensive value is not necessarily as a shutdown guy, but his versatility, length, help defense, and PnR defense are hugely valuable. JJ, Dario, Ersan, and Marco, on the other hand, are all defensive liabilities (Save for Ersan's God-like ability to take charges ).

Ultimately I do think that RoCo should drive less. He's not a good ball handler and a pretty poor finisher at the rim; teams closing out hard at him is a high percentage play. Still, to me there's a bigger issue. Even with Embiid and Simmons being awesome at a lot of things, this offense as a whole can still be a bit of a mess at times. Lots of turnovers and no perimeter guys capable of consistently creating their own shot or in PnR. When open shots aren't falling, it looks ugly.

Until they find a ball handler who can do those things (hopefully Fultz), it seems to me that RoCo's offensive weaknesses will seem more pronounced than they actually are. And even when he's missing, he still breaks even because his defense is outstanding.

To be clear, I wasn't suggesting replacing Covington with either Ersan or Belinelli in the starting lineup. Just that with considerably more three point shooting this year Covington's shooting (such as it is) is less important now than it was before. And the things that Covington offers defensively (which you mention and I agree with) are not impossible to replace.

To an extent I'm just venting here, I don't expect him to be replaced in the starting lineup this year but I do think that position in the starting 5 needs to be upgraded next year. I don't hate the guy and if he can improve his all around game fine, but he's 27 now and I think what we see is all we're going to get- a guy better suited to coming off the bench.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

Looks like Bolden may stay overseas next season.

 

[FLYguy3911]

Looks like Bolden may stay overseas next season.

Need to save his contract for Lebron.

 

[JojoTheWhale]

Hopefully Pasecniks isn't either. That extra year on the Bayless deal is looking exponentially more detrimental by the day.

 

[VoiceOfTheFlyers]

I was under the impression that Philly was one of the rare towns where it was Iggles, then Flyers with a sizable gap then the Phillies and dead last the 76ers.

Disagree. NFL may be the most popular nationally, but here, in terms of popularity, I'm not sure about the Eagles being the runaway favorite. They're the favorite year round on sports talk radio here for sure but the reality is far different.

Years ago, when I was growing up, Eagles games were blacked out a lot because they could never sell out the Vet. Most of the time, for them to sell out the Vet, it depended on the opponent. So Eagles/Dallas was always on tv but you never saw an Eagles/Cardinals game.

Flyers, on the other hand, always sold out even when they were one of the worst teams in the league. Their support has never once wavered.

On top of that, there are many other fans of other teams who were born and raised here. We have a ton of Cowboys fans, there's some New England fans now, there's even quite a few Raiders fans.

Now, contrast that with people who were born and raised in Philadelphia that follow all the major sports, and you'd be EXTREMELY hard pressed to find anyone who was born and raised here that is anything other than a Flyers fan.

It doesn't stop there, either. The basketball history in this town has few peers nationally. Few can match it.

Philly is also a fighting town so boxing also holds a special place here as well.

Phillies and baseball history go further back than most towns in this country have been in existence.

Philly is basically an everything town. Probably the only town in the country that can make that claim.

 

[Les Averman]

Looks like Bolden may stay overseas next season.

Where did you see that? I think he's going to be a nice piece for us in the future. Definite stretch 4 potential