The Sixer Sense
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5 Things We Learned From Philadelphia 76ers Loss To Atlanta Hawks

By Bret Stuter

Oct 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; A Philadelphia 76ers cheerleader performs during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Wells Fargo Center. The Oklahoma City Thunder won 103-97. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; A Philadelphia 76ers cheerleader performs during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Wells Fargo Center. The Oklahoma City Thunder won 103-97. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 4, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) shoots a three point shot over Charlotte Hornets guard Gerald Henderson (9) during the first half at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 4, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) shoots a three point shot over Charlotte Hornets guard Gerald Henderson (9) during the first half at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /

Takeaway Five: (Ouch!)  Philadelphia 76ers starting wings are crippling this team.

Gerald Henderson at shooting guard and Robert Covington at small forward were hoped to excel at defense, and contribute enough offense to keep games interesting.  Both had track records of rising up to the occasion of the moment on defense. Both had tracked upwards on scoring in their careers.

Together? They would fix the Philadelphia 76ers broken wings.  Um.. it didn’t happen.

Into the third quarter the pair were a stymieing 0-10 with two rebounds, two assists, four steals on 38 minutes of game play. Pairing that with 57 minutes from game one and the pair have taken up 95 minutes to score 19 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 6 steals, and 4 turnovers.

While the pair performed somewhat up to expectations in game one – combining for 19 points while holding their opponents to just 11 – the roof came off in game two.  While neither Henderson nor Covington could find the basket, their counterparts for the Hawks did just fine – combining for 23 points. Particularly deadly was Kyle Korver’s three of four shooting from the perimeter, an Achilles Heel in the Philadelphia 76ers defense which Gerald Henderson was hoped to correct.

Next: Sergio Rodriguez Proving All Wrong

Head coach Brett Brown must be frustrated here. Hollis Thompson and Nik Stauskas, two players who struggled to make this roster, are playing better so far at shooting guard. While I know Brown likes to ride through rough patches with his players,  I would like to see the team  to ramp up minutes for both Jerami Grant and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot in the coming weeks.  Grant’s defense is excellent, and he has stronger in the offense this season.  Meanwhile TLC, while raw as a rookie, Is the scrappy in your face defense which could truly throw off the timing of the opposition.