GRADES: Philadelphia 76ers 141, Washington Wizards 136
By Ashley Foltz
Amid the domestic terrorism that occurred in the nation’s capital earlier today, the Philadelphia 76ers looked to bring some sort of peace as they met with the Washington Wizards in South Philly.
Thank you, Daryl Morey, for Seth Curry! After hitting back to back 3s, he went on to hit four more. Curry, with the combination of Ben Simmons, covered the gaps that Joel Embiid had left after going 0-6 after the first quarter. Last season, we would have been in the deep end if Jo started off like that. Oh, how the tables have turned.
The spacing and ball movement has been *chef’s kiss*. Spacing gives Simmons the ability to drive into the paint, kick it out to Shake Milton, who swings it to Danny Green beyond the arc for a 3. Let’s not dismiss all the good that Shake brought tonight. He hasn’t got too much recognition as of late but he’s really going out there every night and putting up lots of stats.
In the second half, Embiid finally hit his first shot of the game. That seemed to help him find his rhythm as he charged into the paint to slam overtop of Thomas Bryant.
— maurice (@tallmaurice) January 7, 2021
Then, in this year’s Sixers fashion, Green hit a buzzer-beater 3 to give Philly an 82-67 lead at the half.
SG. Philadelphia 76ers. SETH CURRY. A+. <strong>36 mins | 28 pts | 5 reb | 3 ast | 0 stl | 0 blk | 1 TO | 11-14 FG | 6-7 3PT| 0-0 FT | 1 PF | +16 |</strong><p>Curry was absolutely raining threes in the first half. Not too many in the second, but he still remained active on the offensive end and continued to shoot.</p>
A. <strong>36 mins | 17 pts | 6 reb | 12 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 3 TO | 7-9 FG | 0-0 3PT| 3-6 FT | 5 PF | +6 | </strong><p>A great game overall by Simmons. He worked both ends of the court and came up clutch when the Sixers began to blow the game.</p>. PG. Philadelphia 76ers. BEN SIMMONS
<strong>37 mins | 38 pts | 8 reb | 5 ast | 3 stl | 3 blk | 5 TO | 11-20 FG | 3-4 3PT| 13-13 FT | 1 PF | +14</strong> <strong>| </strong><p>Embiid went from one point in the first quarter to racking up 38 points to help put away a win. Once he hit his stride, Jo played a huge role on the court (as he should).</p>. C. Philadelphia 76ers. JOEL EMBIID. A
SHAKE MILTON. B. <strong>20 mins | 19 pts | 0 reb | 3 ast | 1 stl | 0 blk | 4 TO | 6-9 FG | 1-3 3PT| 6-8 FT | 3 PF | -5 | </strong><p>Not many people are talking about how important Shake is to this team. He definitely could have played better tonight but it was great to see him out there knocking down shots and staying active on defense.</p>. SG. Philadelphia 76ers
SG. Philadelphia 76ers. DANNY GREEN. A-. <strong>30 mins | 15 pts | 3 reb | 5 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 1 TO | 5-10 FG | 5-8 3PT| 0-0 FT | __ PF | +15 | </strong><p>This was honestly the best performance by Green as a Sixer. He seemed so dialed in and made prime decisions on offense. After struggling beyond the arc in the past games, he showed up large this game.</p>
The Philadelphia 76ers are actually fun to watch again. When the world needed them the most, they delivered. Tobias Harris had himself a (this season) normal type of game. His quick decision-making and on-court presence really stand out this season.
Although Bradley Beal went off for a career-high 60 points, the rest of the Wizards couldn’t step up to compete with him. Hopefully, the Sixers can keep this play up as their next two games are nationally televised. They need to show the rest of the NBA that they’re SERIOUS contenders this year.
Next. Sixers' Player Rankings -- Early strong impressions. dark
And just like that… the Sixers lose their 21-point lead. Much last the previous season, they amaze us in the first half but then become careless and lazy to close out the game. Unlike last season, they actually win this game. Just in case you needed yet another reason to stress out today, the Sixers had you covered.