The Good:
- The Sixers got yet another second round pick. Seriously. The fashion they made this trade was much more exciting and Sixers-esque than any of the previous 83 or so trades they’ve made to acquire their current roll of picks. During Wednesday’s game, as it was happening, the team shipped Brandon Davies off to Brooklyn for an expiring contract in Andre Kirienko (yes, the same guy known as AK-47 about a decade ago), and a 2020 second rounder. They also received the right to swap 2018 picks, should it be to their advantage.
- The hung in there with one of the league’s best teams, the Memphis Grizzlies, for 48 minutes of regulation. In a game that came down to one buzzer-beater to go into overtime (and more reasons you’ll see in the ugly section), the Sixers had a very good shot of winning the ball game.
- Furkan Aldemir has officially been signed, and will make his team debut on Monday.
- Magic Johnson endorsed tanking, pointing out that there is no gain to being “middle of the pack”.
The Bad:
- The game Friday night in Brooklyn. Man, that was a tough one to watch. Leading at the half, Philadelphia went on to only score 25 in, not one quarter, but the entire second half. It did not help that Nerlens Noel had 0 points to Mason Plumlee’s 18. Philadelphia lost the game that difference—18.
- Masked by his recent string of triple-doubles over the past few weeks, Michael Carter-Williams has been insufferable shooting the ball at times this season. He hasn’t been awful for an extended period of time, but when he is really relied on, he often comes up small. He’s made a grand total of six three’s this month, shooting 25.5% from three land this season.
The Ugly:
- An 18-point lead evaporated in about seven minutes in the fourth quarter. Tanking or not, that was still ugly to watch. Highlights included a bad turnover by Carter-Williams with less than a minute to go, called for a push-off. It also featured a bonehead coaching decision by Brett Brown to not foul Memphis, who needed a three to tie, with about four seconds remaining.
Around the NBA:
- The red-hot Golden State Warriors won their 16th consecutive game last night, now standing at 21-2 for the NBA’s top spot in the league.
- Kobe Bryant passed Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list on Sunday night.
- The streaking Hawks, who recently snapped their winning streak, rode a 9-1 run to crack the top three in the Eastern Conference standings.
