The Sixers cruised to victory in Brooklyn on Monday night, 127-108. Both teams limited the starters to one half — a half that was largely controlled by Philadelphia until the Nets mounted a late second-quarter surge led by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
A lot of eyes were on this game because of Brooklyn’s third star, however: Ben Simmons made his NBA return against his former team of all teams. He did a lot of typical Ben Simmons things (good and bad) before bowing out at halftime.
For Philadelphia, let’s dive into the positive and negative takeaways from Monday’s preseason opener.
Positive from Sixers’ win over Nets: Maxey’s stardom
Tyrese Maxey‘s performance was positively sublime. With Joel Embiid and James Harden on the bench, primary creation duties fell to the 21-year-old. He looked completely comfortable, scoring the team’s first eight points and having his way with Brooklyn’s defense the entire first half.
Maxey scored 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting (2-of-4 from deep, 6-of-6 from the free throw line) and dished out three assists in 14 minutes of action. It’s hard to complain. Maxey made several nice passing reads (the next step in his development) and frequented the free throw line, another positive indicator for his growth.
It’s unwise to read too far into a single preseason game, but if Maxey can take another substantial leap next season the Sixers will be in a good place. His blend of speed, skill, and work ethic is entirely unique. There’s no one like Maxey in the NBA right now.
Negative from Sixers’ win over Nets: Transition defense
This was something to watch going into the game: Brooklyn is designed to play fast, and the Sixers struggled mightily defending the fast break last season. The Sixers built up a big lead early, but the end of the second quarter was a disaster because the Nets pushed the tempo and generated clean look after clean look.
The Sixers were playing without two cornerstone defenders in Embiid and P.J. Tucker. So, this game is not cause for panic. That said, the supporting cast isn’t short on quality defenders. Matisse Thybulle, De’Anthony Melton, and Paul Reed is a trio that should be able to run the floor and neutralize fast breaks. There’s definite room for improvement.
With Simmons, Durant, or Irving pushing the ball up the floor and multiple plus shooters stationed around them, the Nets’ offense can be very difficult to contain. This was a challenging for matchup for the shorthanded Sixers and, on the whole, the team fared quite well.
The Nets had the obvious talent advantage in this game, so the second-quarter run (which still ended with Philly leading by three at halftime) was not all that surprising. The Sixers were also experimenting with lineups and going deeper than usual because of four rotation players being out. So, again, nothing to earnestly fret about.
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).
Negative from Sixers’ win over Nets: Melton’s offense
De’Anthony Melton replaced James Harden in the starting five with mixed results. On one hand, he lived up to his reputation on defense: three steals, one block, and several more deflections in 17 minutes of action. That is the foundation of his value in Philadelphia.
Unfortunately for Melton, the offensive side of the ball was much tougher sledding. He shot 1-of-10 from the field and 1-of-7 from deep, scoring five points and committing three turnovers. It was rough.
This game was an excellent example of Melton’s offensive shortcomings. He’s a good shooter (the volume of 3s was good and he will normally hit more of them) and he’s a springy athlete, but Melton shouldn’t be relied upon as a backup point guard. He’s not another ball-handler so much as another 3-and-D wing. Maybe the Sixers’ best 3-and-D wing, and a borderline elite guard defender. But Korkmaz and Joe both looked significantly more comfortable handling the rock than Melton, which should set expectations for his role within the offense next season.
Harden’s return will make Melton’s life even easier on offense. He will almost always share the court with one of Harden or Maxey, so he shouldn’t have any problem focusing on shooting and defending. Much has been said about Melton as a secondary ball-handler, though. He’s not Matisse Thybulle — he can dribble a little bit — but he has never been efficient at the rim, so don’t expect him to be a gifted slasher and playmaker. That’s not his style.
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.