Sixers: 5 takeaways from first third of 2020-21 season

The Sixers are in first place. What have we learned thus far in 2021?

After another eventful offseason, the Philadelphia 76ers have started the new year on a high note. Roughly one third of the way through the 2020-21 season, the Sixers are 18-7, good for first place in the East. Daryl Morey and Doc Rivers have overhauled the Sixers’ leadership structure, and Joel Embiid is playing the best basketball of his career.

While there’s a lot of basketball left to play, Philadelphia is in a good spot. With home-court advantage likely and three real All-Star candidates, it’s impossible to write them off. The East has a couple top-level contenders in Brooklyn and Milwaukee, but the Sixers are forcing themselves into that conversation.

Here are some takeaways from the first third of the Sixers’ season.

Sixers takeaway #5: Milton, Thybulle anchor bench

After brief uncertainty over his role and future with the franchise, Matisse Thybulle has thundered back into the hearts and minds of Sixer fans. It’s clear he is an important part of Doc Rivers’ second unit — a player the Sixers will lean on regularly, even in crunch time, because of his elite perimeter defense.

Thybulle is flat-out special defensively. He has improved his decision-making this season, taking fewer ill-advised risks while still racking up absurd deflection numbers. He creates more chaos than just about any individual defender in the league, flying over screens, making split-second recoveries, and using his 6-foot-11 wingspan to the fullest extent possible.

As for Shake Milton, he came into this season with a great deal of hype — fueled in large part by Rivers, who had nothing but praise for Milton’s scoring chops in training camp. While Milton hasn’t been as consistent as he was last season, the 6-foot-5 comboguard has showcased a remarkably polished scoring arsenal when leading the second unit. His 3-point shooting will regress to the mean, and he will continue to anchor the second unit offensively.