Sixers Best Lineup Shines Per Sir Charles In Charge

Sir Charles In Charge Reported the most effective lineup of each NBA Team. Their report for the Sixers Best Lineup is provocative

FanSided’s Sir Charles In Charge website is a great place to check out for good NBA content. I try to check it out daily, but I must admit that the Philadelphia 76ers have kept me hopping recently.

And so, I was pleasantly surprised when I checked them out and found a nice article : NBA: Every Team’s Best Lineup, By The Numbers written by Nicholas Gonzalez. Curiousity got the best of me, and I began to flip slides to see which lineup would be named as the Philadelphia 76ers premier lineup.

And there it was. The Sixers success in five names:

"Lineup: R.Covington, J.Embiid, E.Ilyasova, T.McConnell, N.StauskasORTG: 106.7 DRTG: 87.3"

Of course, the names refer to small forward Robert Covington, rookie center Joel Embiid, power forward Ersan Ilyasova, point guard T.J. McConnell, and shooting guard Nik Stauskas.

Curiousity Killed The Misconceptions

The curious part of the lineup are both the players and the results.  Would you have thought that T.J. McConnell is the most effective point guard on this team?  Well, he has had that 17 assist night, and he did hit that game winning jumper.  Come to think of it, why is his name on this lineup a surprise at all?

You are not alone if Nik Stauskas’ name in that lineup surprises you. Former Sixers president Sam Hinkie coveted him enough to name him specifically in negotiating a contract with the Sacramento Kings. In fact, both he and Robert Covington appeared specifically as players Hinkie wanted on this team. And both were singled out by head coach Brett Brown to be coached up as two-way players. While results were not immediate, they are immense.  And Nik Stauskas has been performing well on the offensive side of the ball this year as well.

Roc, Sixers and Paper

And then, despite his offensive slump, Robert Covington (“Roc”) has contributed to the teams resurging defense this season.  And come to think of it, he also shot a game winning basket on an inbound pass from Dario Saric. Now that he is starting to gel offensively, he is helping the Sixers find a winning streak that has evaded them for three seasons.

Both Ilyasova and Embiid are solid in the front court, and they play complimentary basketball.  In fact, Ersan Ilyasova has played well enough to begin the talk of returning to the team next season. To do so, the team must offer him a new paper contract for him to sign. Will the team do so? It’s hard to believe that they won’t.

Head coach Brett Brown has been experimenting with the team’s players this year, determining which ensemble is most compatible.  With this news, the team could begin to slow down on rotations and focus on this group. In fact, look who the starters are for the January 20 showdown with the Portland Trailblazers?

When Ben Simmons returns to the lineup, he will need minutes, likely at the expense of McConnell. But for now, the Philadelphia 76ers can rest assured that the team has a quality lineup on the team.

Next: 2017 NBA Draft Kings Rudy Gay Injury Insures Sixers Success

Now who will the team play around them?  That is a discussion for another day.