Sixers: Positives and negatives from preseason win over Nets

Positive from Sixers’ win over Nets: Depth, depth, more depth

Much has been said about the Sixers’ improved depth. It was on full display Monday night. Virtually the entire roster turned in a solid performance in one way or another. Once the game shifted to the reserves in the second half, Philly ran away with it. Their bench unit drastically outperformed Brooklyn’s bench unit, and that was with three starters and Danuel House riding the bench.

The backup center battle is shaping up to be quite fun: Paul Reed and Montrezl Harrell both looked great. Reed got the start in Embiid’s place and racked up an efficient 10 points and three steals in 20 minutes. Harrell actually took a page out of Reed’s book and fouled out in 12 minutes off the bench, but he produced prolifically in those 12 minutes — 10 points, five boards, three assists, and boatloads of energy.

On top of Furkan’s aforementioned brilliance in the second unit, Philly was treated to strong nights from Georges Niang (eight points, five boards, 2-of-5 from deep in 14 minutes), Isaiah Joe (nine points, 3-of-6 from deep in 17 minutes), and two-way player Julian Champagnie (15 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals, 3-of-7 from deep in 18 minutes). Even Jaden Springer made some things happen.

A lot of the guys fighting for minutes or for a roster spot in general showed out. The Sixers can legitimately claim to go 12 or 13-deep this season. That doesn’t mean Doc Rivers should use all of his playable players every night — nine or 10 is plenty — but it finally feels like Philly has options.