Carter-Williams plans to use awful game as motivation
OAKLAND, Calif. - Michael Carter-Williams may never forget his dreadful performance on Saturday night. He wants it that way. The 76ers point guard made only 2 of 20 shots in an 88-71 loss to the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena, and he plans to use the performance as motivation. It's something he'll think about during practices, something he'll remind himself about during offseason workouts.
OAKLAND, Calif. - Michael Carter-Williams may never forget his dreadful performance on Saturday night. He wants it that way.
The 76ers point guard made only 2 of 20 shots in an 88-71 loss to the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena, and he plans to use the performance as motivation. It's something he'll think about during practices, something he'll remind himself about during offseason workouts.
"This is going to definitely push me to get better," Carter-Williams said. "And I won't forget moments like this. Every great player says moments like these are what make you great. That's what I hope to learn from this."
He'll get a chance to bounce back Tuesday night against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena.
In the meantime, last season's rookie of the year has to relive his worst shooting performance of the season.
Carter-Williams missed his first four shots. Then after making a driving layup, he missed nine straight attempts before hitting a three-pointer with 3 minutes, 58 seconds left in the third quarter. He finished with five consecutive misses. Seven of his misfires for the night came on uncontested shots.
The 23-year-old finished with eight points, six assists, four rebounds and six turnovers in 361/2 minutes.
"I didn't want to shy away from [shooting]," Carter-Williams. "That's worse than doing what I did. I didn't shoot the ball well. . . . But I'd rather do that than have an open shot and not shoot the ball and hurt my team that way.
"So I think if I had to do it again, I wouldn't pass up any shot. . . . I would still try to compete and do the best I can."
Unfortunately for him, poor shooting nights are common.
Carter-Williams is making just 24.6 percent of his three-point shots and 62.7 percent of his free throws. He is the team's second-leading scorer at 15.6 points per game because of his ability to get to the rim.
However, the 6-foot-6, 190-pounder isn't getting any help from the referees.
He is routinely bumped by defenders and on occasion is knocked to the floor. Yet rarely does Carter-Williams get the calls that a standout veteran point guard such as Chris Paul or Tony Parker would receive.
I think there's multiple reasons," Carter-Williams said of his inability to draw fouls. "There are clear, obvious reasons [that reporters] all know. It doesn't need to be said. There are other reasons.
"It's on me, also. I need to be more explosive to the rim and not be so underneath to the big men and try to attack more. . . . If I have to go and dunk the ball [to get a call], that's something that I have to do."
Noel recovering
X-rays on Nerlens Noel's sprained left ankle were negative, the team said.
Back-to-Back Struggles
The Sixers' Michael Carter-Williams had a particularly bad weekend during the team's two-game losing streak. Here are his numbers:
Minutes: 37 per game
Field goals: 10 for 40 (25 percent)
Assists: 5.5 per game
Turnovers: 5.0 per game
Three-pointers: 1 for 8 (13 percent)
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