Biggest Questions and Thoughts on Sixers Resuming
This has been a long four months since we have seen the Sixers play. It almost feels like the process of halting play is an offseason, but teams will have to pick up right where they left off.
No one has time to waste. Players will have the difficult task of getting into late-season form as quickly as possible. All eight regular season games could be important, especially for Philly, who is currently the six seed, tied with the Pacers and two games behind the Heat.
With adjustments trying to be made in order for the Sixers to bounce back, here are the main questions for players I’m looking at to see how good the team can be.
Horford Bounce Back in New Role?
Let’s be honest – paying a backup center $24 million per year is less than ideal. The Al Horford project so far hasn’t worked well for Philly, but he seemed to finally start picking things up the final two weeks before the season was postponed, most of the time without Embiid on the floor with him.
I truly believe Horford is the biggest factor for the Sixers in determining how far they can go. He deserves a lot of credit for having the humility to accept coming off the bench. This can help spread out the offense better and supply a defensive anchor to hold down the fort when Embiid is on the bench. Has this long break allowed Horford to refresh and become a dominant big once again? Fans better hope so. This team cannot go far if Horford plays sloppy.
Point-Four Simmons?
It looks like Brett Brown’s plan is for Ben Simmons to move over to be the starting power forward for the first time in his NBA career. This is mainly to add more shooting in the lineup, but as Simmons jumps into important late-season games, it will be interesting to see how he will adjust. Will he take after players like LeBron James and Scottie Pippen by playing more of a point forward position, or will Brown take the ball out of the all-star’s hands more than we think?
Around this point last season, Simmons became less of a focal point on offense, as Butler and Embiid took over, and lasered in on playing stealth defense. Maybe it won’t be exactly the same in these playoffs with Butler gone, but we will see what role the new-positioned Simmons will have in Philly’s offense.
Plus, will he have any more threes up his sleeve?? 🙂
How Well Can Embiid Carry the Team?
Embiid had his superstar moments in the 2019 playoffs, but also struggled at other times. Without Jimmy Butler this year, there is very little room for error from The Process himself in the playoffs.
Bottom line: Embiid needs to show up. He has talent surrounding him, but he needs to put the team on his shoulders. It’s time to show why JoJo is the best center in the league and persuade critics why he is one of the best players in the world, period. Whether it’s bullying in the paint on both sides, knocking down an occasional deep shot or regularly getting to the free throw line, Embiid must be the leader of this team to make a deep push.
Korkmaz Consistency?
Remember a few years ago when people speculated when Korkmaz would come over to the NBA? Those were the days.
Tangent aside, the sharpshooter stepped his game up this season. When he is on his shot is knockdown, a great piece to use off the bench as a catch-and-shoot guy. Will he be able to keep this up? Can he stay productive in the playoffs against the most talented teams giving it their all on defense? If Korkmaz can, he could be a huge spark plug in Orlando. If not, it could be hard to justify his playing time.
Will Thybulle Make the Regular Rotation?
Our All-Rookie, as the Sixers’ social media proclaimed him, has been a fan favorite and a lockdown defender all season. Thybulle has gained a ton of attention from his vlogs and having an impressive all-around first scrimmage game. Will it be enough for him to have playing time?
Most teams shrink their rotations to only having eight or nine guys play in the playoffs. With Thybulle needing to compete with other worthy wing players off the bench like Korkmaz, Robinson III and Burke, we will have to see how Brown rotates their minutes. Not all of those players will be able to get decent playing time in the playoffs, if any minutes at all. I really hope Thybulle will be able to play. His defense and athleticism can be huge for us, plus I just love rooting for him.
Shake Playoff-Starting Caliber Point Guard?
It has been awesome to see Shake evolve this season. I loved seeing him grow once he got more playing time when Simmons was injured. The team still thinks highly of him and he will most likely be the starting point guard once the season resumes. It would be great to be able to have a talented guard with his length for the playoffs. How fun would it be if he could keep up his shooting to force guys like Paul George to yell for help guarding him?
The thing is though, he has never played in a situation like this against the top caliber of players in the world. Will Milton be a good enough starting point guard to help the Sixers get by squads like the Bucks or the Celtics to make a run for a championship? I’m optimistic he’s been steady enough to get the job done, but it is not a given yet.
And, maybe most importantly, will the Orlando bubble court still play “Shake Shake Shake!” after every Milton basket??
