Nov 6, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Wizards point guard John Wall (2) against the Philadelphia 76ers during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Wizards defeated the 76ers, 116-102. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Today is a special day. It’s my mom’s birthday. Oh…and sure, we’re celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as well. In what has become some sort of tradition, the Sixers are once again will be taking to floor this afternoon. The game starts at 2 pm on CSN Philly and also on the radio on 97.5 The Fanatic.
Okay, we got that out of the way. Let’s talk about the game, shall we?
The Wizards will be looking to get to .500 again after losing to the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. The Wizards haven’t been over the .500 mark since the 09-10 season when they were 2-1. Um, ouch. Anyway, the Wizards will be looking to even things up at home. The Sixers have a losing streak on the road. The streak? 11 game losing streak on the road against East teams. Yup. Now, while the Sixers have been losing on the road against the East, last time they were visiting, they did win, 109-102 in what was the Wizards’ home opener. But, the Wizards were playing really bad for the start of their season while the Sixers had been on a surprising start. It would seem the tables of performance have changed as the Sixers have been losing in blowout fashion while the Wizards have been playing better as of late.
How can the Sixers win? Well, from what I’ve gathered in recent Wizards games, John Wall has been doing everything on his own. Does this meant the Sixers should just focus on him? Yes and no. Wall can get to the rim. Michael Carter-Williams will probably have some trouble staying in front of the quick guard. And MCW still has problems with pick and rolls. The Wizards do enjoy a good pick and roll game.
Wall will try to get to the rim. Thing is, if Sixers collapse on him, well, the Wizards are 4th best in the league in shooting percentage from the perimeter. So, all Wall has to do is kick it out. Not to mention the Sixers are already struggling to defend that line too. It could be yet another long
night
afternoon from long range. Even so, the Wizards are one of the best at the rim. Less than five feet, they are 4th best shooting 62.0%. The solution is to get the Wizards to look like they’re coached by Doug Collins by shooting long two’s.
Yes, the focus defensively is on Wall for the most part. He drives the team and it seems, to me, that the team plays as well as Wall plays. If he’s off, the team is in trouble. If they can find a way to control him, Sixers should be fine.
What about offense? What can the Sixers do over the Wizards? Well, they need to take care of the ball. They lead the league far and wide in turnovers. It’s almost funny considering just a couple of season ago, the Sixers set a league record for lowest turnovers per game. Anyway, the Sixers turn the ball over. For all of their turnovers, they are actually 4th on the league in steals. So, Sixers would get chances to get on the break. The Sixers rank higher in their defensive rebounding than the Wizards rank in offensive rebounding. So, it’s possible that the Sixers can indeed get on the break often. It’s their game to run and play with energy. Will the loss of Tony Wroten, probably the top energy guy (although Thad Young might have something to say about that), hurt the Sixers? Sure. But, they should still be able to get it done.
Okay, so, I expect the Wizards to win. Do I expect a blowout? Hard to tell. The Sixers have been getting blown out recently. They’ve been losing by an average of 18.2 points. Again, the Sixers have been losing on the road, but, have beaten the Wizards on the road. In fact, the only win on the road against the East was indeed against the Wizards. Hey, it could happen again.
I would like to thank NBA.com for stats and facts I used. And I would like to thank you for reading. Enjoy the game.