The Sixer Sense Podcast is back following another dominant performance by the Sixers' big man, Joel Embiid. He recorded a 31-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist triple-double in a rout of the Chicago Bulls. Is Embiid the current MVP frontrunner in the NBA?
Philly won 110-97, but the final score was not indicative of the lopsidedness of this game. The Sixers were up by 26 points heading into the fourth quarter, where the bench unfortunately underperformed. Did this game give you any concern for the Sixers' depth going forward?
One potential benefit that came out of this game was the debut of a new starting lineup. De'Anthony Melton was out with an injury so Nick Nurse opted to have both Nic Batum and Kelly Oubre Jr. starting alongside each other for the first time this season. In Toronto, Nurse was known for utilizing long, athletic lineups and this was the first indication he may try it in Philly too. Pregame Nurse had this to say:
"We’re going to see how well [Kelly Oubre and Nic Batum] share the floor tonight. This starting lineup was in the back of my mind that we’re going with tonight was something that was a possibility. I think it just makes us a little bit bigger and a little bit more athletic on the wing, you know, with wingspan and things like that at the two, three. It gives us pretty good size in the starting lineup that we’re going with tonight. I think that them playing together is definitely something we’re going to be looking at."
Are Jonathan Geib and Lucas Johnson in favor of this new starting lineup and bringing Melton off the bench even when healthy? How would this impact Melton's confidence as well as the scoring on the second unit?
The podcast closes out with the Around the NBA segment, where the guys discuss big news across the league. This week, the Oklahoma City Thunder must be talked about on the podcast for the first time in a couple of weeks.
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