The Philadelphia 76ers lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night. The tough loss snapped the Sixers’ five game winning streak, as they now fall to 6-5 on the year.
It wasn’t a particularly “pretty” game in Sacramento for the Philadelphia 76ers tonight, as almost every development in this game pointed towards a disappointing loss for a young Sixers team. Ben Simmons missed almost the entirety of the third quarter with 4 fouls, and Joel Embiid nearly gave all of Philadelphia a heart attack with his non-contact fall to the hardwood at the end of the third quarter (he would be okay).
An extremely strong shooting performance from Robert Covington kept the Sixers in contention early, as the Kings lit it up from outside, pouring in 64 points in the first half. J.J. Redick got hot for a stretch in the third quarter as well, en route to another solid game for the veteran sharpshooter.
Again, the Philadelphia 76ers young core struggled to get it done in crunch time, as they’ve shown can be an issue in the early part of the 2017 NBA season. Timely buckets from Embiid, Simmons, and Covington guided this effort up until the last minute, when another breakdown occurred. De’Aaron Fox nailed a jumper with 15 seconds left, and Embiid missed one on the other end, giving the Kings the 109-108 victory.
Sixers Bench Struggles with Simmons in Foul Trouble
One of the more noticeable struggles for the Philadelphia 76ers in this game was the lack of overall bench production from anyone. Although Justin Anderson was a bright spot with 10 rebounds, no one else really contributed to the game in a big way. These guys will absolutely need to step up in the future, as Simmons and Embiid will often face foul trouble in the majority of games.
Not to Worry
This young 76ers team will figure it out eventually. Closing games isn’t easy at any level of basketball, especially with everything magnified at the NBA level. With playoff hopes and aspirations, the quality of being able to close games will be important for this young time come April and May.
Next, in a huge test on Saturday evening in the Bay Area, the Philadelphia 76ers will take on the Golden State Warriors in the first of two meetings between the squads this season.