The Philadelphia 76ers are off to a nightmare start. Fans hoped things would improve with Paul George’s return, but his shaky Sixers debut was followed by a head-scratching loss to his former team on Wednesday night. Philly dropped to 1-6 on the season and has dropped four straight games. Joel Embiid is currently serving a 3-game suspension and the Sixers are bordering on a collapse.
Head coach Nick Nurse must reevaluate his rotations ahead of a difficult stretch. The Sixers face the Lakers and Hornets with Embiid suspended before four straight games versus the Knicks, Cavaliers, Magic, and Heat. Philadelphia is battling with the latter four for playoff positioning in the East and certainly cannot afford to give away games against lesser competition. Anything short of four wins in this six-game stretch should be viewed as a disappointment.
Nurse is experimenting, but little has worked. Philadelphia has four players with a negative value over replacement player (VORP) and three producing 0.0 win shares or fewer in the regular rotation. Paul George will be better and Caleb Martin must improve, but this player may be dropped from the rotation entirely.
Eric Gordon is becoming unplayable for the 76ers
Gordon’s stats do not look that poor. He is averaging 7.0 points, 1.4 assists, and 0.9 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per game on 40.5 percent shooting from the field and 33.3 percent on his 3-point attempts over seven games. For a reserve role player, that is not that bad, but on further examination, things are much worse.
In the 76ers' lone win of the season, he had 15 points and made two 3-pointers on five of ten shooting from the field. Remove that contest and the 35-year-old has put up just 5.6 points on 37.0 percent shooting from the field and made just five threes in six games. Philadelphia outscored the Pacers by 17 with him on the floor in their lone win and has been outscored by 17 points in the rest of his minutes this season.
Gordon is known for his scoring and ability to space the floor. They need that production more than ever with their two superstars missing a combined 12 games to start the season. The Sixers are 26th in offensive rating and 28th in net rating. Gordon is not making shots and struggling to create space.
Kyle Lowry and Andre Drummond have arguably been worse, but the 76ers need them to play. The veteran point guard helps organize the offense and gets the team into their sets. Fans can argue about giving Reggie Jackson or rookie Jared McCain a chance, but neither has the leadership and organizational skills of Lowry. Drummond is playing extended minutes because of Embiid’s absence. He will be in a reserve role soon enough and can dominate second-unit centers.
Gordon desperately needs to be an offensive threat. He was never known for his defense and has produced a negative-2.7 defensive box score plus-minus this season, which is the worst in the Sixers regular rotation. His offense is supposed to make up for that, but averaging seven points per game on questionable efficiency does not.
Gordon is seventh on the team in minutes per game ahead of Guerschon Yabusele, K.J. Martin, and Jared McCain. With George back and Embiid nearing a return, the 76ers may want to consider limiting Gordon’s minutes further in favor of a two-way threat. The 35-year-old has played over 20 minutes just once in the last four games and his playing time likely trends further down as the Sixers get healthy.
Tyrese Maxey's injury complicates this. Shams Charania reported the All-Star will miss multiple weeks, and the Sixers will need scoring and guard play in his absence. If Gordon continues to struggle, he is not the answer, but Maxey being out likely gives the veteran a longer leash.
The Philadelphia 76ers desperately need a victory to get back on track. Better days are ahead if they can get healthy, but Nick Nurse must figure out his rotations. Eric Gordon should be on the chopping block if he does not start scoring and spacing the floor. The veteran is past his prime and may not stick in the rotation. It is certainly something worth watching closely.