Sixers: Positives and negatives from preseason win over Nets

Positive from Sixers’ win over Nets: Holy Furky

Furkan Korkmaz was quite bad after the All-Star break last season. At media day, he mentioned nerve damage in his shooting hand, which forced him to change his mechanics and consequently disrupted his rhythm. Now he’s healthy, apparently, the the early results were quite promising.

In the second half, with starters retired to the bench, Korkmaz shined. He finished the game with 15 points and four assists in 19 minutes, shooting 6-of-12 from the field and 2-of-4 from deep. He basically shared backup point guard duties with Isaiah Joe, and not unlike early last season, he looked comfortable handling the rock. Korkmaz had several smooth finishes around the rim, breaking out floaters and hook shots to great effect.

The Sixers’ second unit is far from set in stone. There are minutes to be had. Philadelphia’s depth can get in the way — there are simply too many good players to give everyone a fair shake — but Korkmaz has long-running chemistry with Embiid and he was one of Doc’s favorites prior to last season’s cold spell. Maybe, just maybe, he can work his way back into the picture.

This isn’t the first time we have seen Korkmaz outclass backend rotation players. If his 3s are falling, it’s not hard to imagine Korkmaz surpassing the likes of Niang or Milton, who are more limited offensively (and defensively in the case of Niang).