Three Normal Things: Sixers Vs. Spurs
Three Normal Things
Adam Aaronson, whose legal name is Sixers Adam (@SixersAdam on Twitter), covers the Sixers for The Rights To Ricky Sanchez. He has been legally banned from covering the team in person, and when that ban was set to be lifted, Covid-19 struck. He believes cantaloupe is the best food in existence, and is brought to you by the Official Realtor of The Process, Adam Ksebe.
Welcome back to Three Normal Things! Let’s not waste any time here.
#1: Welcome back, everyone
Speaking as someone who has attended many empty-arena games this season, man oh man was it nice to see and hear real people. I won’t miss the automated, pre-recorded fan reactions. I can’t express enough how much nicer it is to hear genuine cheers and boos from a good Philly crowd. Please mask up so this building can be filled during the playoffs.
#2: A fascinating new pairing
Dwight Howard’s performance has been much-improved of late. Part of that can be attributed to his recent connectivity with Furkan Korkmaz. The two have developed an excellent rapport, specifically as a pick-and-roll duo.
Dwight’s vertical gravity and catch radius as a lob threat (yeah, I know complex basketball terminology, no big deal to me) make him an ideal partner in crime for Korkmaz, who has once again made improvements as a ball-handler. Thanks to Dwight’s outlier tools and Furkan’s shooting and handling abilities, Korkmaz-Howard pick-and-rolls have become a vital part of the Sixers’ second unit offense.
#3: Seth Curry bounces back
Since returning from injury, Curry entered tonight’s game shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from beyond the arc. And it wasn’t just shots not falling -- Curry seemed generally uncomfortable, and that may be due to him running the offense with Ben Simmons sidelined. And his shot selection was lackluster: Curry was often pump-faking from beyond the arc and stepping in for suboptimal contested long twos.
Mid-range jumpers are okay for a shooter as prolific as Curry, but tonight we saw much more of him releasing from beyond the arc or attacking closeouts on his way to the rim. And fortunately for the Sixers, Curry’s improved shot chart came with improved productivity, as Curry had one of his highest-scoring games as a Sixer.