After losing two straight outings, the Philadelphia 76ers have zero time to pout. That is because they are now slated to face their toughest test yet this season with the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, coming up next in their schedule. And no, this is not only your typical Thunder team — this is a pissed off OKC squad that just lost two straight contests to their rivals from San Antonio, including on Christmas Day.
Oklahoma City will be motivated to silence their abrutp naysayers, which makes this contest all the more tougher for Philly. However, the 76ers do have a weapon which can make the hosts uncomfortable if they follow what worked for the Spurs in the form of VJ Edgecombe, who has been sensational as a rookie.
Edgecombe, who is probably already a lock for an All-Rookie First Team berth, has what it takes to bother OKC’s litany of tough and rugged defenders on the perimeter. And if Nick Nurse can pull the right strings at the right time, the 76ers might just have what it takes to follow suit on what San Antonio was able to do.
The 76ers should take advantage of VJ Edgecombe against the Thunder
The biggest reason why the Spurs managed to win three games over the Thunder when the rest of the NBA combined was only able to muster two is because they had a couple of advantages unique to them — a 7’5” freak of nature who shuts down everything in the paint and a troika of guards who can all handle the rock and are physical enough to overwhelm the reigning champs’ armory of perimeter stoppers.
The 76ers obviously do not have that 7’5” alien, but they do have a semblance of the latter. Edgecombe, in particular, has the physical tools to neutralize whatever the Thunder have for him via Lu Dort, Cason Wallace, and Alex Caruso.
Of course, it takes a lot of things to go awry for any team to have a shot at upending the Thunder, especially at home. But if the 76ers can avoid coughing the ball up and prevent OKC from scoring off turnovers, they can equalize things by asserting their will with their rim-runners led by Edgecombe and make plays from thereon.
Again, it’s still highly difficult to expect the 76ers to just casually replicate what the Spurs did, but at the very least, they have an ace up their sleeves that can light the fuse and propel them to a win. Call it wishful thinking, but most other teams do not even have that kind of a player like Edgecombe who is built to overcome what the Thunder have on D.