The Philadelphia 76ers are the real deal
The Washington Wizards are an NBA playoff team this season. With the injury to the Boston Celtics Gordon Hayward, perhaps the biggest threat to the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. And the Philadelphia 76ers played to nearly a dead heat in Washington.
Air Alamo
Next up? Hosting the Boston Celtics.
While the first game against Washington was a loss, the same game played in Philadelphia feels very winnable. I don’t know if Philadelphia can sustain the offensive energy from game one, but I do believe the defense will vastly improve as the season progresses.
Redick will score more. Markelle Fultz will too. In fact, I can see the transition to starting Markelle Fultz around Thanksgiving Day.
Brown wisely taking it slow
Coach Brown does not have years of knowing how the core of his team works. He’s had one game from Simmons, 32 games from Embiid, four games from Bayless, one game from Redick. In fact, the only starter Brown has coached in a good number of NBA games before is Covington.
And Covington went ballistic last night. Coincidentally, he is also in his contract year.
Next: 5 noteworthy things from the Sixers’ opening night loss
Finally, in defense of Markelle Fultz. On one hand, Embiid sat for two seasons. On the other hand, Simmons and Noel sat for one. As a matter of fact, only Jahlil Okafor starred as a rookie on this team. That was a very bad team and he was directed to score. And so, Fultz has had one game. He will get better each game. You don’t build an empire by nailing boards together as fast as you can.
Constructing something intended to endure means getting the foundation right. That is what the Philadelphia 76ers intend to do this year.