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Final Score: Philadelphia 76ers beat Dallas Mavericks, 106-100
Stats:
76ers: Field Goals 39-84 (46.4 percent), 50 rebounds, 31 assists, 10 turnovers.
Mavericks: Field Goals 38-88 (43.2 percent), 49 rebounds, 27 assists, 15 turnovers.
Coming off a five-game road trip and with the Dallas Mavericks in the Wells Fargo Center, the 76ers secured a great win with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons shouldering the team. Jimmy Butler missed his second consecutive game due to upper respiratory infections.
The 76ers went on to lead the game by as much as 19 points in the second half. While the bench didn't capitalise well, the lead was cut to four points in the last minute.
Embiid sealed the 76ers' victory with clutch free throws. He added a game-high 25 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists while shooting 7-17 from the field (10-11 free throws).
The reigning ROTY, Simmons, posted an impressive triple-double in the win, his sixth of the season. JJ Redick added 20 points for as the 76ers improved to 17-3 at home while winning 4 out of the last 5 games.
The 22-year-old rookie Jonah Bolden who has been promoted to the forward position due to the absence of Wilson Chandler, contributed 11 points (4-8 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 3-6 FT), 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks in 29 minutes.
The Mavericks had a rough night both at the offensive as well as the defensive end. They were just catching up to the 76ers' score the entire night and never led the scoreboard in the second half of the match.
The "Wonderboy" Luka Doncic ran out of his magic, he shot 4-16 from the field finished with 14 points and 8 rebounds.
Neither their big man DeAndre Jordan could play to the potential. He didn’t play the final two-thirds of the fourth quarter due to a left-hand contusion. Jordan contributed 8 points and 8 rebounds in the 31 minutes he played.
Here are some takeaways from the game as the 76ers routed the Dallas Mavericks.
#3 Expected "reigning ROTY" and "prospect ROTY" duel didn't pay off well
With Doncic visiting the 76ers' home-court for the first time, expectations were high that the crowd will get to witness a good duel of the young talents. But the 4-game road-trip seemingly resulted in fatigue to some extent. Luka and the Mavs ran out of gas while playing their ninth game on the road over their last 11 matches.
Luka couldn't connect shots and also failed to set up plays for fellow mates. He shot a terrible 4-of-16 from the field and finished with 14 points and 8 rebounds. Also, he converted only one 3-pointer of the 8 attempts that he took.
What proved to be promising was Simmons' performance and his new mid-range turnaround jumper.
The Aussie superstar scored a monstrous triple-double with 20 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists. His play-making ability and inside scoring is known all over the NBA but he is making some noise with his newly incorporated jump-shot.
It is highly being anticipated that both Doncic and Simmons will make it to the All-Star game this year, but the fans will have to wait for a duel true to its nature between the overseas stars.
#2 Mavs' bench shines as starters struggled
After only two of the starters, Doncic (14 points) and Wesley Matthews (18 points), were able to score in double digits while facing a tough 76ers defence, Rick Carlisle took to his bench to handle the business. Their bench scored 51 of the team’s points, grabbed 25 of their 49 rebounds and made 20 of their 38 field goals.
The Mavs bench outscored the starters, 51-49, and also outrebounded them 25-24 that too in approximately 19 fewer minutes than the starters.
Ryan Broekhoff contributed 15 points off the bench, Dwight Powell ended with 13 points and 4 rebounds and Maxi Kleber added 6 points and 7 rebounds. The rookie Jalen Brunson fell 2 assists short of a triple-double and finished with 8 assists, 13 points and 11 rebounds.
This game proved that the Mavs bench is hailed as one of the best in business for a reason. Their key bench players J. J. Barea, Devin Harris and Dirk Nowitzki, all of whom were rested on the second night of a back-to-back, will be well rested and back in action as they head home for only the fourth time since 13 December.
#1 76ers' questionable chemistry with Butler
It is less than two months that Jimmy Butler was traded from Minnesota to Philadelphia and the tensions around the chemistry and his role on the 76ers team are being voiced by the four-time All-Star.
A report published on Saturday said Butler recently challenged coach Brett Brown and wants to be utilised differently in the offensive scheme. It also mentioned that he had a heated interaction with the 76ers' head coach during a recent film session.
Butler prefers to be the centre of a pick-and-roll system but the team already features two high-usage stars, Embiid, who is a dominant inside scorer, and Simmons who is a gifted play-maker but a non-shooter.
Butler was absent for any dialogue before the game and didn't play his second consecutive game because of respiratory infection. While head coach Brown dismissed the report and tried extinguishing the situation. Brown said:
“As I’ve said to the team a moment ago, I’ve had many meetings with Jimmy. In the film session, I didn’t think it went over the line. If it did, I would’ve addressed it, I didn’t feel like any of that crossed the line. He’s vocal. He’s all in and he has opinions, but it’s instigated by me. None of this should surprise anybody. He’s got opinions. He wants to be heard. And he should be heard.”
After a win against Pistons early in December, Embiid had similarly questioned and complained about his role on the team with the addition of Butler. He was asked to space the floor to help Butler and Simmons.
As the NBA looks on to the 76ers situation, it looks like more than ever that they have to "Trust the Process". With a closely bonded big-3 and a deep bench, the Sixers can challenge any team in the East to a competitive playoff series but they have to work all this out as the season progresses.
