When Will Philadelphia 76ers Begin Beating NBA Best?

Feb 8, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Jahlil Okafor (8) falls hard to the floor while going for a loose ball against Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Clippers won 98-92 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Patience. Yet as the Philadelphia 76ers turn the corner into 2016, they show signs of turning the corner in other levels as well. Patience got us here, but will it be enough to get us out?

The Final score was 98-92. The Los Angeles Clippers versus the Philadelphia 76ers game ended in overtime. If you had not followed the game, the easy conclusion would logically have been “Oh well, bad NBA team loses another one.” But the game was more than that. It was a Philadelphia 76ers team emerging from the gate as the superior team, only to fall a hybernation-like stupor in the second half of the game. This was a very good Clippers team, and for three quarters, the Philadelphia 76ers played the better game.

The Philadelphia 76ers lost to the Chicago Bulls in overtime on January 14, by the narrow score of 115-111. Chicago is 27-24, and likely on track to return to the NBA playoffs.

On January 30, the Philadelphia 76ers faced the nations best Golden State Warriors, who were in the midst of a torrid hot streak, and battled them to nearly until the final .2 seconds of their game.

In all three games, close but no WEO. (see A&P Warehouse Economy Outlet 1970s campaign, check it out in your spare time)

For now, it might be enough to bring this young team repeatedly to knock on the door of a major upset. Take these young players, show them that the hard work and effort pays off, and then fail in the last moments to reincentivize the next session at the gym or at the practice court. This young team, these young players, are working awfully hard to improve. When the team shows up in such a big way against very good teams, it’s a measure of how far they’ve come. They have come very far indeed.

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And so, fans, players and administrators of the Philadelphia 76ers can take comfort knowing they are becoming more competitive, hanging longer in games against the best competition, showing more heart and fortitude as they attempt to launch comebacks. But falling short, no matter how the spin, is still falling short. But whenever I get this way, I check out the guys who don the jersey for their views:

Something special is in the making. Just Wait On It!!!!
— Robert Covington (@Holla_At_Rob33) July 2, 2015

Yes. Winning the OT games against the best of the NBA would be special. The Sixers were close to winning. But what can get them over that hurdle? When will they begin beating the NBA Best?

In the Sixers loss to the Bulls, they played a good game against the Bulls roster, save one player – shooting guard Jimmy Butler. Butler had a career high 53 points against the Sixers, on a night when the combination of Sixers two top scorers, Ish Smith at 24 points and Robert Covington at 25 points, fell short of Butler’s performance. But to be fair, Butler shot 30 attempts and sank half of those. In the game, Jerami Grant did not play, and Nerlens Noel fell ill just before the tip off. Even Robert Covington fouled out in the game. Without two top defenders, and with their top scorer flirting with foul trouble, the Sixers appeared to be over-matched in the second half. The largest deficit for the Sixers was the rebounding, where the Bulls out-hustled them 53-34.

In the Sixers loss to the Warriors, the team once more fell far behind in rebounds: 57-40, but outplayed their opponent in turnovers 23-10. In this game, it was the Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson who led all scorers with 32 points. The Sixers two top scorers, Isaiah Canaan at 18 and Ish Smith at 16, outscored Thompson by two points.

In the Sixers loss to the Clippers, once more it was that shooting guard position. This time in the form of J.J. Redick and Jamal Crawford, each coming in with 23 points to seal the victory. While the Sixers won the rebounds at 54-52, they lost the turnovers by 20-10.

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In each game, the starting shooting guard was Nik Stauskas, with Hollis Thompson coming off the bench. In each case, the opposing team’s shooting guard went ballistic on the Sixers, shooting – and hitting – on nearly every shot launched in the direction of the basket. Now this is not to say that the team’s woes are the fault of Stauskas nor Thompson. When Jimmy Butler faced Wesley Matthews of the Dallas Mavericks, he scored just four points. When the Warriors faced the Mavericks, Thompson scored 10 points and 45 points, and when J.J. Redick faced the Mavericks on two occasions, he was held to 12 and 10 points and Jamal Crawford was limited to 13 and 11 points.

Wesley Mathews is the epitome of what head coach Brett Brown wants of his shooting guards. Some offense but excellent perimeter defense. It’s that “two way ability” that has kept the Mavericks defense so sound, and prevented the kind of games from opposing shooting guards that have plagued the 76ers this season. Yes, offense is good. But it seems that the options must include sound play at the two position. When the Sixers develop that kind of play in the shooting guard to neutralize their opponent’s counterpart offensively, we will begin to win those games.

How long will that be? Hopefully by the time the 2016 season starts. Perhaps one of four first round picks in the 2016 NBA draft will bring the player whom Brown is looking for, a shooting guard who can defend and score consistently well, in the upcoming draft.