Rookie Adem Bona steps up to challenge in first legitimate Sixers minutes: ‘I was ready’

Adem Bona went to chapel with teammate Jared McCain about an hour before Wednesday’s tipoff, just like he has before every game since becoming a 76er.

The routine helped center the Sixers rookie during an eventful week. Bona went from playing for the G League’s Delaware Blue Coats on Monday to matching up against the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers’ standout big men, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, in his first legitimate NBA minutes on Wednesday. He finished with four points and nine rebounds in 17 minutes, 15 seconds, an outing coach Nick Nurse called “lively” and left Bona encouraged about his early progress as a professional.

“It felt amazing having the opportunity to do what I do out there,” Bona said. “The coaches trusted me, putting me in the game. That was like a little confidence boost for me, to show the coach I can contribute and help the team.”

A rotation spot opened Wednesday when the Sixers’ center depth unexpectedly depleted. Joel Embiid, who made his season debut in Tuesday’s loss to the New York Knicks, unsurprisingly was ruled out that afternoon because of left knee injury management. Less than two hours before tipoff, though, Andre Drummond also was a late scratch because of illness.

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Nurse acknowledged pregame that the environment would be challenging for Bona, given that Allen is a former All-Star and Mobley has blossomed into an efficient and dominant threat on both ends of the floor. Bona’s task, the coach said, was “to go out there and play absolutely as hard as he can, for as long as he can.”

“But he should be excited to get his opportunity,” Nurse said. “Let’s see what he does with it.”

Bona had been preparing for such a chance since the Sixers drafted him in the second round in late June, following a UCLA career capped by Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year honors.

Observing and practicing against Embiid and Drummond since training camp has made him a more effective rebounder, Bona said. Making the trip down to Delaware — where he stuffed the box score with 14 points, nine rebounds, five assists, three steals, and three blocks in a loss to Maine — got his lungs going. And in addition to his pregame chapel session on Wednesday — where McCain said they spoke about “taking any opportunity we can to get out there” — Bona spent time studying film and the scouting report.

“If the coach calls me, and I don’t know what I’m doing, that’s a bad look for me,” Bona said. “I stay ready every time.”

Shortly after entering the game late in the first quarter, Bona got his hand on the ball for a tip-in. By the end of his initial stint, he had collected five rebounds. Though he muddled through a couple of miscues — such as a sharp feed in the paint from Eric Gordon that he couldn’t handle or a bad pass off a rebound that led to a turnover and him fouling Allen on a second-quarter dunk attempt — Nurse said Bona “didn’t really make many mistakes.”

At the start of the fourth quarter, Bona was guarding Mobley. Later, Bona’s emphatic putback slam with 7 minutes, 39 seconds to play cut the Sixers’ deficit to 95-91 and prompted a Cleveland timeout. Bona also elevated to swat away a Mobley attempt early in the period that the officials called goaltending, which Nurse said after the game he wished he would have challenged.

“I didn’t see the replay, but I knew it was a block,” Bona said. “I’ve been in that position multiple times.”

» READ MORE: Sixers hang tough but drop to 2-9 with their latest loss to the undefeated Cavaliers

Bona became the latest Sixer to step into a rotation role, since their roster is still not fully healthy 11 games into the season.

Jeff Dowtin Jr. has spent time as the backup point guard while All-Star Tyrese Maxey is sidelined with a hamstring injury. On the second night of a back-to-back — and with All-Star wing Paul George also load managing his knee — Reggie Jackson (13 points, four assists), KJ Martin, and Ricky Council IV logged double-digit minutes Wednesday. McCain, of course, continues to be a rookie revelation and recorded a career-high 34 points and 10 assists against the Cavaliers.

The Sixers also likely will continue to need center help throughout the season, with Embiid expected to periodically miss games as part of a season-long knee management plan. Drummond is a veteran but has struggled in these early games. Frenchman Guerschon Yabusele, conversely, has gotten off to a terrific start in his NBA return.

And Bona officially joined that big man mix Wednesday and held steady against a challenging opposing frontcourt.

“I was ready,” he said.