Sixers grades: Paul Reed stars in place of Joel Embiid; Marcus Morris’ varying halves
Despite the loss, the Sixers had a handful of players step up with Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris out.
DENVER – The 76ers suffered a 111-105 loss to the Denver Nuggets Saturday evening at Ball Arena.
The Sixers fought hard without starters Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, and De’Anthony Melton. Here are my grades from the game.
Center: A+
Paul Reed was fantastic. He finished with a game-high 30 points along with 13 rebounds and two steals while starting in place of Embiid. Reed even outplayed two-time league MVP Nikola Jokić in the first half.
Forwards: B
Nico Batum was a non-factor on offense. He didn’t even attempt a shot in the first half. Defensively, Batum was OK. But it was obvious that he’s still getting over his illness.
Marcus Morris was dominant on the offensive end in the first half. The North Philly native scored 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting in the first half by excelling with his mid-range game. Morris also got to his spots and took advantage of his size. However, he missed all seven of his second-half shots while fatigued from getting extended minutes in Denver’s high altitude. Morris did a solid job of helping out on guarding Jokić.
Danuel House Jr. was helpful on the defensive end. He gave the Sixers a huge spark off the bench. He also made some timely shots in the third quarter to keep his team in the game.
KJ Martin’s movement without the ball has been great for the second consecutive game. The trade candidate’s athleticism was also on full display.
Guards: B+
Kelly Oubre carried the load for the Sixers’ offense with so many key pieces out. He finished with 25 points. This was a solid bounce-back game for the swingman after struggling Thursday against the Indiana Pacers.
Patrick Beverley was in straight beast-mode, as usual. He brought his trademark energy, leadership, and being a pain for the other team. Beverley even got under Denver guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s skin, leading to a double technical.
Furkan Korkmaz didn’t do much in the first half. He did have one assist in a 2-minute, 6-second stretch in the first quarter. However, Korkmaz didn’t have his number called in the second quarter. He played with more energy after intermission and had a big steal. Korkmaz also drained a nice off-balance three.
Jaden Springer played solid defense. He even drew a second-quarter charge on Jokić while guarding him. Springer’s energy was exceptional.