Orton makes his mark; Sixers fall to T'wolves

Daniel Orton never became the Orlando Magic's backup center. Not even close.

He was not re-signed after a two-year run in Orlando and moved on to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Orton's stint with his hometown team was just as fruitless. The Thunder released him on Oct. 10.

The 76ers signed him five days later. They're hoping the third opportunity is the charm for Orton, the 29th overall pick in the 2010 draft.

So far, he's making a good impression.

Working hard to shed pounds to fit into the Sixers' up-tempo style, Orton has lost nine pounds since joining the team.

On Wednesday, the 6-foot-10, 266-pounder finished with seven points and four rebounds in a 125-102 preseason loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Wells Fargo Center. Orton had 10 rebounds on Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

"It was a decent day," Orton said. "Nothing spectacular. Nothing special. Just a decent day."

Orton had a total of 17 rebounds in limited action in three preseason games.

"You see a big, nimble man, running rim to rim," coach Brett Brown said. "He's a rim protector. We want to get him more of a post disposition, where he gets and likes getting to the free-throw line [and] wants to go dunking on people and not cruising outside of the lane or the top of the key and shooting long jump shots."

Orton has a non-guaranteed deal with the Sixers. However, the 23-year-old realizes that he'll be given ample opportunity to show that he can fit in the organization's long-term plans.

That's something he really didn't get the opportunity to show during his previous two NBA stops.

Orton said he was focusing on rebounding and setting screens with the Sixers.

"I'm just trying to get [teammates] open looks, open shots," he said. "Get that weakside man open, rebounding and getting it out quickly. I'm trying to get the ball really, really fast and just get us into our offense. Because right now, that's all we really need is quick possessions."

The Sixers (2-5) concluded their preseason schedule with four consecutive losses.

James Anderson finished with a game-high 23 points on 9-for-13 shooting for the Sixers. He made 4 of 8 three-pointers. Also in double figures were Michael Carter-Williams (15 points, nine rebounds), Evan Turner (11 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists), Thaddeus Young (11 points), and Spencer Hawes (10 points).

Reserve point guard J.J. Barea led the Timberwolves (4-2) with 22 points. Kevin Love had 19.

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