GRADES: Philadelphia 76ers 116, Orlando Magic 92
By Ashley Foltz
The Philadelphia 76ers headed down to the “most magical place on Earth” to end 2020 with a BANG and extinguish the previously undefeated Orlando Magic.
The Philadelphia 76ers came out blazing their way towards a victory. Ben Simmons shocked everyone and shut down the James Harden rumors with a corner 3 to create momentum. The fun didn’t end there though. The Sixers looked like they were working on their New Year’s Resolutions early as everyone was hitting shots from the floor and beyond.
Joel Embiid came out LARGE working it on offense as he spun around Nikola Vučević in the paint for an enormous slam and his signature flex afterward. Our guys ended up leading 38-22 at the end of the first while shooting 6 of 10 from beyond.
Just a few days after the Sixers picked up Matisse Thybulle’s third-year deal, he scored his first points of the season. Not only that but he hit two 3s in the first half. This sort of confidence and energy was executed by the whole team. Suddenly the only undefeated team in the NBA (Magic) were down by 35 points at the end of the first half. Boy, was that a shoulders-down, dance around the living room kind of halftime.
A. <strong>26 mins | 21 pts | 9 reb | 2 ast | 0 stl | 2 blk | 0 TO | 7-11 FG | 1-2 3PT| 6-8 FT | 2 PF | +24 | </strong><p>Jojo looked like his old self with how much fun he was having. We saw him do some dances, shimmies, and lots of smiles. Is it too early to say “MVP”?</p>. C. Philadelphia 76ers. JOEL EMBIID
B+. <strong>24 mins | 9 pts | 10 reb | 8 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 2 TO | 3-7 FG | 1-1 3PT| 2-2 FT | 3 PF | +26 | </strong><p>I’m still buzzing over Ben’s corner three, but I’m trying not to make a huge deal out of it. The last time he hit a three everyone got their hopes up but were just let down. I would have liked to see him drive in the paint more like he usually does.</p>. PG. Philadelphia 76ers. BEN SIMMONS
A. <strong>24 mins | 21 pts | 1 reb | 3 ast | 1 stl | 0 blk | 1 TO | 7-12 FG | 5-7 3PT| 2-2 FT | 1 PF | +22 | </strong><p>I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it once again, it’s so nice to have a reliable three-point shooter. I don’t have to cringe, tense up, or hold my breath when the ball leaves his fingertips.</p>. SG. Philadelphia 76ers. SETH CURRY
A. <strong>26 mins | 20 pts | 9 reb | 3 ast | 0 stl | 1 blk | 1 TO | 8-15 FG | 3-4 3PT| 1-1 FT | 2 PF | +29 | </strong><p>It looks as though Tobi read the slander on Sixers’ Twitter and wanted to prove us wrong. He’s definitely has a long way to go to play up to his contract, but I’m liking the way he’s looking lately.</p>. PF. Philadelphia 76ers. TOBIAS HARRIS
SHAKE MILTON. B+. <strong>24 mins | 14 pts | 4 reb | 6 ast | 1 stl | 2 blk | 1 TO | 6-15 FG | 1-4 3PT| 1-1 FT | 1 PF | +20 | </strong><p>Shake is the real deal. If you’re an avid Sixers viewer you probably know that by now. He just seems like advances every single game.</p>. SG. Philadelphia 76ers
Tobias Harris came out again tonight and showed why the Sixers are paying him megabucks. He shot the ball, especially from three, without hesitation. The Sixers were just raining threes, with the help of Seth Curry who seems to be fitting in with Philly quite nicely.
Finally, we got to give Embiid and the starters a break in the fourth quarter. The last 12 minutes belonged to the bench, which gave them a chance to show what they can bring to the court.
dark. Next. Simmons isn’t helping to fight off Harden trade rumors
Crossing my fingers that the Sixers replicate this momentum when they return to the Wells Fargo Center to take on the Charlotte Hornets for their first game of 2021.