The Philadelphia 76ers did not have much going for them in their most recent outing against the Detroit Pistons, which culminated in a 23-point beatdown. Be that as it may, given how the team decided to start that game out, this result was probably something they should have seen coming.
No, it was not Joel Embiid being sidelined that doomed them right from the get-go — it was the team’s decision to start Kelly Oubre Jr. and deploy a new configuration that turned out to be the ill-advised shift. In 24 minutes of gameplay, the veteran was a team-worst -28 finishing with just three points and more concerningly, on only four total field goal attempts.
Oubre has seen his role change this season when the team has their usual forward rotation intact. But with Embiid out against Detroit, Nurse opted to veer away from his typical two-big setup with Dominick Barlow as the nominal 4 and chose to go with Oubre, probably for more speed. That was not what happened, though, and what they got instead was a harsh reminder that they are using Oubre wrong.
The 76ers should stick to playing Kelly Oubre off the bench
As everyone already knows at this point, bench scoring is not exactly a strength of this group. After all, Philly has the fifth-lowest scoring second unit in the league. That makes it quite counterintuitive to take Oubre out of the bench, through which the team can best utilize his skill set.
Playing next to ball-dominant stars in Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, and VJ Edgecombe, the 76ers basically minimize whatever opportunity Oubre has on the scoring end. Sure, he does bring slashing and defensive activity in the starting five, but those are the things they have already been getting from, well, Barlow.
Barlow’s numbers are far from impressive, but his impact goes beyond what the boxscore indicates. He is a low-usage utility man who, despite the relative lack of a three-point shot, is able to contribute on the defensive end while being a heady connector on offense. He is simply a much more seamless fit next to such ball-dominant players.
Hopefully, this will be a lesson for the 76ers to not ruin what has been faring well as of late, especially if Joel Embiid remains out of the commission against a San Antonio Spurs squad that has won 27 of their last 30 games.