Oh God:

If the Sixers go out in the second round again, our collective epitaph will say “All Bench.” No names, no dates, no messages on the tombstone. It will just say “RIP: All Bench.” That’s what did us in, the Niang, Milton, McDaniels, Reed, and Melton/Tucker lineup, which entered game 7 against Boston with a 75-69 lead and then exited the floor down 82-77.

At face value, this is a rather innocuous answer from Doc, but it allows a contentious topic to linger. He’s got Joel Embiid, James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris on this roster. In a contemporary postseason where first round rotations are 9-10 guys and second-round rotations are 7-9, depending on how deep in a series you are, there’s no justifiable reason to play all bench, ever. Brett Brown didn’t play all bench. When you go back to game 7 against the Raptors, Mike Scott played 11 minutes off the bench, James Ennis 14, and Greg Monroe two (excruciating minutes). Every starter went 40+ in that game, as it should be.

Anyway, let’s hope and pray for no all bench lineups from now until eternity.