Nov 27, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green (4) rebounds the ball past Philadelphia 76ers forward KJ Martin (1) during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Despite the very best efforts of Tyrese Maxey and Guerschon Yabusele, the Sixers fell to the Houston Rockets in overtime on Wednesday.
Here's what I saw.
- The first half saw easily the best play of the season for Andre Drummond and Ricky Council IV. Drummond's imprint was on the glass and beyond, while Council spiked the team's energy with some hustle play in the second quarter.
Drummond's activity was notable from the very first Philadelphia possession of the game, hauling down a pair of offensive rebounds to generate additional bites at the apple for the Sixers. He stood tall on the other end of the floor, too. It was no easy task for the Rockets to finish around him inside, and Drummond emerged from the trees to collect four defensive rebounds in the first half.
Drummond also served as connector in the middle of the floor on a couple of Sixers possessions, catching the ball out of the short roll and spraying it to the other side of the court. It was the first half of basketball in which Drummond wasn't actively harmful to the team in quite a while.
Council, on the other hand, supplied some athletic juice to get the Sixers moving. He spiked a couple of Houston shots out of the air and got Philadelphia running, digging in to poke the ball away for transition opportunities from time to time.
Council was part of a lineup Nurse deployed in the second quarter that lacked pretty much all useful skills for finishing possessions but was bizarrely refreshing. The group was springy and had some off-the-dribble juice, a breath of fresh air from some of the lineups he's deployed. And they actually junked the game up and got Philadelphia back in the fight by keeping the ball moving until something opened up for a driver, cutter or lurker in the dunker's spot.
- Certainly not Jared McCain's best half of shooting, but I thought he showed impressive poise as a ball-handler ahead of halftime. Houston has all kinds of ball pressure demons. They can throw veterans like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks at a rookie to prey on tendencies. They can get length on him with Amen Thompson, Tari Eason and Jabari Smith Jr. Yet, McCain was neither rushed nor loose with his handle. Sign of a natural point guard.
- A nod to Maxey. Rough start (see below), but he looked as close to himself as he has all season. He created leverage on almost every touch, finding the driving edge to attack the basket or the sharp burst to change directions and manufacture space for a three. Had to be an exhausting night for him.
- Nick Nurse is in line for some credit. He recognized the boost that Council gave and banished Eric Gordon and Reggie Jackson to the bench for the remainder of the game.
- He eventually settled in nicely, but Maxey definitely forced some plays in the first quarter. He committed himself to shots that were not organic, ending possessions on low-quality attempts. He also committed himself to passes that weren't there, throwing the ball to nowhere to give Houston transition opportunities.
- As was a theme in their loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday, the Sixers had no real answer for dribble penetration. Houston, especially Jalen Green, got into the paint basically at will and essentially ran layup lines. It wasn't as if the drives were collapsing the paint for kick-outs. Green and VanVleet combined for seven of Houston's nine made threes through the late stages of the third quarter. It was literally as if the seas parted after the initial line of defense and that was all she wrote.
- Kelly Oubre Jr. has got to start making some of these open catch-and-shoot threes. To some degree, easier said than done. But, that's the bare minimum offensive skill for a modern wing. He's not giving enough anywhere else to take that ask beyond reason.
- Oh, look - Jalen Green just hit another three against the Sixers' drop coverage. Maybe it's time to change it up?
- I have no idea who leads the league in five-second violations, but it has to be the Sixers. Their inbound plays are horrendous.
- The crowd deserves an applause. Night before Thanksgiving. More than $100 million in salary not playing. The team was 3-13. Still a lively showing by those in attendance.
The Sixers (3-14) will visit the Detroit Pistons (8-12) on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m., Eastern time. You can watch the game on NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus.
