JJ Redick went to New Orleans this summer after the “economics” didn’t work out following the completion of his second one-year contract with the Sixers.
The Pelicans are in Philly tonight and Redick spoke to reporters at shootaround, touching first on the success of his former team:
There it is –
A marquee road win.
That was the Sixers’ best W of the season, a mature and composed display against a team that was previously unbeaten at home. They took out an Eastern Conference rival, a team above them in the standings, and honestly really needed that kind of victory to instill a bit of confidence in a fan base that was happy but looking for just a bit more from a title contender.
Quirky ending to this game, too, with a brief ‘hack-a-Simmons’ routine resulting in Ben going 2-2 from the foul line. Joel Embiid closed with a 5-6 mark from the stripe over the final 25 seconds and the Sixers benefited from a no-call on Josh Richardson, who hooked Jaylen Brown on an inbound play with both hands but avoided a whistle:
Hey listen, if they don’t call it, they don’t call it. It was a three-point game when that happened, the Sixers extended the lead to four on the ensuing possession, and then closed it out from the free throw line.
If you’re keeping track, that’s two wins over Boston, one at home and one on the road. Brett Brown’s team also has home wins over Miami, Toronto, and Indy, so they’ve defeated every top-six team in East outside of Milwaukee, who they have not yet played. 19-7 puts the Sixers 3.5 games back of the Bucks and tied for 2nd in the conference with the Heat.
Wednesday, the big story on Action News was Joel Embiid, and comments made by Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal, who wondered if we were getting the best that the Sixers big man has to offer in 2019.
That was part of a discussion that took place on TNT after the Philly win over Denver on Tuesday night, with Barkley claiming that the Sixers have no chance of going to the NBA finals after originally picking them to win the Eastern Conference.
This morning, at shootaround up in Boston, Keith Pompey of the Inquirer asked Embiid about those comments, and he gave what I thought was a great answer:
So earlier today we did the post about Charles Barkley, who thinks the Sixers “ain’t got no chance” to reach the NBA finals after originally making that prediction before the season began.
That line came from a postgame TNT discussion between Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Ernie Johnson, and Kenny Smith, the bulk of which centered around Embiid’s play and whether or not we were seeing the best of what he has to offer in 2019.
Stephen A Smith, who yesterday identified himself as the most annoying person in sports, echoed those sentiments with a take that I do not find unreasonable:
If you’ve been to a Sixers game in the past three years, you know there are three things that get the crowd more pumped up than anything.
The first would be a big play, like a slam dunk or clutch fourth-quarter shot.
The second would be the twice-a-night tee shirt toss, when free swag is launched into the stands via gatling guns and handheld air rifles.
And the third is the Wendy’s Frosty Freeze Out, a promotion that has sort of morphed from a minor gimmick into a second-half spectacle.
In case you’re living under a rock and not familiar with the Freeze Out, Wendy’s offers a tiered system of fan rewards when an opposing player misses two free throws in the 3rd or 4th quarter. Stage 1 is a free small Frosty. Stage 2 is a small Frosty and a small fry. And stage 3 is a medium Frosty and a medium fry.
Everybody loves free stuff, right? This results in fans going absolutely bonkers while members of the Dunk Squad and dance team wave huge cardboard cutouts behind the basket.
Serious question though –
Interesting discussion after last night’s Sixers game, which aired on TNT.
The crew was discussing big men and Joel Embiid, the gist of the conversation centering on how Joel’s name isn’t popping up consistently when fans and media talk about the NBA’s best players. Charles Barkley touches on that before amending his prediction that Philly will go to the NBA finals, and that starts around the 9:00 mark of this clip:
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13 straight home wins to begin the season.
Not bad at all for the Sixers, who improved to 18-7 last night with a five-point win against a good Denver team. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is actually the team’s best home start since 1966, when they began 22-0 at home en route to a 68-13 record and NBA title. Not sure this team is at the same level, but it’s a nice statistic.
It was also the 10th time the Sixers have held an opponent below 100 points this season, 10 games resulting in 10 wins. Neither team shot particularly well from three last night, but Philly got a 34-point bench performance while benefiting from an early injury to Jamal Murray, which knocked him out of the game.
Brett Brown on remaining unbeaten at home:
It feels good, but I’d be lying if I told you that it comes with overconfidence. I just see all the areas that we can get better in. To truly feel the way that I feel and be undefeated with 13 wins at home is good, I suppose. It’s a great place to play and we have a fantastic crowd.
Denver scored seven points in the game’s seven final minutes, so that certainly helps. Credit the Sixers for their defense on Tuesday night, on national television. It was a bit like watching one of those Penn State/Iowa football barn burners from years past, where the defenses are playing at a high level while the offenses leave something to be desired.
Looked for the video of this “incident” from last night but I don’t think it exists.
Philly native and NBA champion Kyle Lowry apparently shared some words with a heckler when leaving the court at the Wells Fargo Center, as documented by ESPN’s Tim Bontemps:
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