2 – Covington is Finding His Groove Again
Robert Covington has been a streaky player this year. At times, he’s looked like one of the Philadelphia 76ers’ worst players, and at other times, he’s looked like their best.
After Wednesday’s 19-point (6-for-10 field goals, 4-for-7 3-pointers) 10 rebound, 3 steal and 3 block effort, it appears that Covington is back on the upswing.
For perspective, this tweet was sent out in the second quarter of Wednesday night’s game:
#Sixers Robert Covington has hit 3 of 5 3-pointers tonight after going 3-for-27 in previous 5 games. #Sixers
— Tom Moore (@TomMoorePhilly) November 24, 2016
In a team-high 46 minutes of playing time on Wednesday, he was one of the most effective players on the Sixers’ roster. Aside from stuffing the stat sheet, he did well breaking up plays defensively, dove on the ground for loose balls and also fought of defenders in heavy-traffic rebounding situations in the paint.
At different points throughout the game, he was covering the Grizzlies’ big men and also their guards. He’s as versatile as a defender as the NBA has to offer.
Robert Covington has 48 deflections on the season, the most among #sixers players. TJ McConnell 2nd with 34, Ilyasova 3rd with 26.
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) November 22, 2016
Robert Covington had 12 deflections on the night. No other #sixers player had more than 3.
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) November 24, 2016
Earlier this week, I wrote that once Covington finds his shot again, he’s going to be trouble for the opposition. On Wednesday, he connected on 60 percent of his shot attempts and was a problem for the Grizzlies from start to finish.
And he was one of the main reasons that the Sixers were able to hang around as long as they did during Wednesday’s game.