Jaylen Brown bellows at the Xfinity Mobile Arena crowd after burying a clutch bucket against the Cleveland Cavaliers. [Reuters]
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Good morning gang,
It was in yesterday morning’s newsletter that I told you you’d be bought back in if the Sixers won on Thursday to start the season 2-0. Doing so would mean they beat both the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers, two top-of-résumé opponents. I told you to open your hearts and embrace a special ride.
Boy, did I look stupid for the first 24 minutes of that home opener.
The Sixers spotted the Cavaliers a 29-point lead in the first half. They went into the locker room down 24, doused by a rain of boos so severe that even the halftime act caught some of the storm.
And then something happened in that locker room.
They came out and allowed Cleveland to score just 37 points in the second half. The Cavaliers averaged 34.5 in the first two quarters of the game.
The Sixers held the Cavaliers to 82.7 points per 100 halfcourt plays for the game, per Cleaning The Glass.
That is a commentary on the Sixers’ inability to control the ball in the first half. They committed 14 turnovers ahead of the intermission.
It is also a commentary on how the Sixers got back into the game in the second half.
Second, they decided to dig in on the ball.
Not just when the ball crossed halfcourt. Not just on one or two targeted offensive players.
And Maxey led the charge. This is often said in hyperbole, but in this case it is accurate: He wore James Harden like a body suit.
Flat-out. Point blank.
“Totally changed the game, right? He totally changed the game,” Nick Nurse told reporters after the victory.
“I think he came out and just, you know, it’s kind of, he’s out there doing that and the rest of the guys are in the back watching and then all of a sudden they start saying, ‘I’m in. I’ll be in on those, too’. And then all of a sudden he got everybody. He provides not only the physical effort to start it but just kind of a spark that got everybody kind of moving.”
Maxey was obsessed with making Harden, and any other ballhandler he picked up, work to get the ball up the floor. But as the Sixers grew more and more physical on defense, the shot clock became their ally. Suddenly they were making the Cavaliers rush, suddenly they were turning role players into creators, and it completely jammed up Cleveland’s offensive attack.
But the story of the game would be incomplete without mention of Jaylen Brown, who dominated for 12 minutes in the fourth quarter. He played in the background for three quarters, occasionally getting a shot but mostly reserving his best for moments of defensive playmaking.
As the Sixers finally seized control, it was Brown whose scoring put the game away. He filled the nets with a barrage of mid-range jumpers, including the knockout punch: a pull-up just within the foul line that led to a Cleveland timeout.
Brown waltzed down the court and bellowed, soaking in the adoration from his new home crowd.
The Sixers have a back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday. They will host the Milwaukee Bucks and Detroit Pistons. Joel Embiid has already said he won’t play in one of the games.
Catch you down in South Philly this weekend.
Other coverage around Sixer world
Sixers Adam on crunch time and turnover woes in the 29-point comeback win.
Kyle Neubeck with some commentary on Adem Bona’s uninspiring start to the season.
Gina Mizell with an excellent profile on Mike Gansey.
The Associated Press and ESPN on LeBron James’ response to criticism from President Trump.
Not quite Sixer world, but Boston Celtics reporter Jay King on Jaylen Brown not buying that Jayson Tatum was caught off guard by the summer blockbuster that split the long-time teammates up.