The Sixer Sense
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Brown Declares 76ers Point Guard Is Marshall

By Bret Stuter

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Dec 13, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Philadelphia 76ers guard

Kendall Marshall

(5) dribbles past Toronto Raptors guard

Kyle Lowry

(7) in the second quarter at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Peter Llewellyn-USA TODAY Sports

Brown Declares 76ers Point Guard Is Marshall

It started as nobody at the point guard position, then it became too many at the point guard position. Then it became too few at the point guard position. The needle is no longer swaying back and forth between too few and too many. The needle is now pointing steadily, in the direction of Kendall Marshall. That’s what head coach Brett Brown announced – the 76ers point guard is Marshall.

"“It’s going to be his (Marshall’s) job to lose,” – Brett Brown"

Butter. That’s his nickname. Pass the butter? An odd nickname, but when you learn why it makes perfect sense.

"“At the local Boys & Girls Club they used to do these little weekly write-ups about the games throughout the week and the sports coordinator who ran the league said, ‘He spreads the ball around like it’s butter.’ Since then my family and friends called me that,” Marshall said."

And that’s the key to the position for Brett Brown. Pace, Space and Pass.

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Kendall Marshall, in a fashion similar to teammate T.J. McConnell, is a pure point guard. The role is about directing the plays on the court, moving the ball into position, and then passing the ball to the shooter. So far McConnell is listed as the team leader with 5.4 assists per game, Marshall is at 5.5 assists per game. It’s just that Kendall Marshall is just coming back from an ACL injury, and has only appeared in two games so far. He is selfless, and he prefers to get the ball into a teammates hands.

Marshal does not take shots at the basket willingly, which is another trait he shares with T.J. McConnell. But it is a trait that Brett Brown wants to change.

The stage was set earlier in the year when the Sixers announced they were committing a multi-year contract to Marshall.

Kendall Marshall actually played with the Delaware 87ers, the 76ers developmental league team. Josh Wilson and Lucas Gouvalis  had written separate but excellent stories on Marshall: What does he bring to the Sixers?, and Stating The Case For Kendall Marshall To Start. But Kendall Marshall is not being well received by everyone. In another Sixer Sense article, we discussed the team chemistry, and the lack of it, between Tony Wroten and Kendall Marshall.

Perhaps it’s the fact that both Tony Wroten and Kendall Marshall are coming off injuries at the same time, and are both playing under restricted minutes. But it may simply be to keep the peace on a young volatile squad that compels Brett Brown to alternate between Wroten and Marshall playing.  While McConnell and Marshall are pure point guards, Wroten and Isaiah Canaan have a tendency to take the shot first, and pass only when there is not shot to take.

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When the season began, Brown was eager to see the play of the six-man battle for the starting point guard spot. Wroten, Marshall, Isaiah Canaan, Pierre Jackson, Scott Wilbekin and T.J. McConell are all in the mix. At the time, he had estimated three would eventually make the roster.  But Pierre Jackson was injured in preseason, and Scott Wilbekin simply didn’t show enough to beat out the expected play of both Wroten and Marshall when they came back from injury.

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But even injured, Marshall was eagerly anticipated by Brown, who praised Marshall even before the player took the court in a Sixers jersey for his ability to “pass the hell out of the ball. The pass is king.”

And it is that passing ability that clearly gets Marshall the nod.  For now, in this young season.  Check back after the game versus the Atlanta Hawks.  I will update this story with Marshall’s performance, let’s hope it’s our second victory celebration as well.