Ten Game Recap Ending With Philadelphia 76ers @ San Antonio Spurs

Ten Game Recap Ending With Philadelphia 76ers @ San Antonio Spurs

It was a long shot bet to think the Philadelphia 76ers might eek out a win against the San Antonio Spurs, but in both the second and fourth quarters of the game, the team played well enough to do just that. However, they faltered badly in the opening quarter, and coming out to play the second half to seal their tenth loss with no wins in this opening stretch of a new NBA season. In fact, on an individual game basis, it is no surprise that these 76ers are winless.

Of the first ten games, eight games were against the NBA top eleven teams. Only the games against Milwaukee (ranked 16th) and Orlando (ranked 20th) were not. Of the top powerhouse NBA teams, the 76ers have not faced the Golden State Warriors, the Miami Heat, the LA Clippers, nor the Atlanta Hawks. They did luck (bad luck) into facing the dangerous Cleveland Cavaliers twice so far.

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So many fans of other teams have already begun the age 0ld custom of trolling a team and their fans when they are not successful, and this Sixers team is not an exception. But the facts of this fledgeling phase of the new NBA year are not so simple. The team has been plagued with injuries, which only serve to complicate the challenges of youth and inexperience in this NBA.

They’ve been outscored over-matched and overwhelmed so far, but the salt in the wound is that the Sixers started with so many players injured: Carl Landry, Tony Wroten, Robert Covington, Kendall Marshall, Richaun Holmes, Nerlens Noel, and of course Joel Embiid.

In a season where the team was hoping to beef up its offensive production, so many injured has waylaid those plans, as the team has fallen to an average score of 90.6 points per game, last in the league and nearly four points less than next place Brooklyn Nets. The team is still committing turnovers, 29th worst in the league, is last in the NBA in field goal accuracy at 41.5%, and is 24th in the league at three point accuracy. Finally, they are 25th in the league in rebound percentage. So it’s not exactly a bright picture in the early part of the season… or… is it?

This team was bound to be a slow starter. With the team limited to returning veterans of Isaiah Canaan, Robert Covington, Jerami Grant, Nerlens Noel, Jakarr Sampson, Hollis Thompson, Tony Wroten and Joel Embiid, names who also appear on the injured list, this team has been a grouping of talented rookie youth, hopes of undrafted prospects, and “Trusting The Process”. With eight of the sixteen players returning, and with three of those players injured for the beginning of this season, this is truly a group of unfamiliar faces attempting to bond and compete. In ten games, they have shown that they can be competitive against the NBA’s best. But….

They have yet to win.

Still, you have to give the team its due. The Sixers have a pair of good and hopefully great some day in the pair of bigs of Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor. They have surprisingly good play out of formerly undrafted point guard TJ McConnell. But most of all, general manager Sam Hinkie has stacked this deck so that even when they lost out on a gamble, the risk yields a reward -or in this case improved chances at a top draft pick.

So ten games into the season, and the team has earned no more victories than it had in the off-season. Still, the team is finding gems in the rough in TJ McConnell. It also has some good minutes out of Hollis Thompson, whose 44.2% accuracy from three-pointerville leads the team. The team is also getting some improved minutes from JaKarr Sampson, and getting decent offensive production from Jerami Grant.

Coach Brett Brown has to work with the players who can take the court, and that has left a number of quality players out of the discussion so far. But Robert Covington has been getting eased back into playing time, and in the next segment we should see signs of other players easing back into practice and eventually limited game time.

Yes, it would have been nice to see the Sixers come out with two or three wins in the first ten games, but nobody bet on that. This is a Sixers team that is building for the long haul. Eventually, this snowball will grow large enough to begin knocking some teams over.

Next: Game Recap Sixers Lose Big To Pacers

For now, we can sit back and watch that maturation of some fine young NBA players. In games 11-20, the Sixers have already dropped game eleven to the Dallas Mavericks: 92-86. They face off against the Indiana Pacers tonight at 7 PM EST. Their remaining opponents will be at Charlotte Hornets Nov. 20, at Miami Heat Nov. 21, at Minnesota Timberwolves Nov. 23, at Boston Celtic Nov. 25, at Houston Rockets on black Friday Nov. 27, at Memphis Grizzlies Nov. 29, finally home to face the LA Lakers on December 1, and then back on the road to face the NY Knicks on Dec. 2.

Perhaps we’ll have some wins to discuss next time?