The Sixers are giving rookie Isaiah Joe a closer look off the bench

The way the 76ers’ bench has struggled recently, coach Doc Rivers is searching for answers. It’s gotten to the point that he seems to be holding in-game auditions. During Sunday’s 110-103 loss to the Toronto Raptors in Tampa, Fla., Rivers moved rookie Isaiah Joe ahead of struggling Furkan Korkmaz in the rotation.

Korkmaz entered the game with 10 minutes and 27 seconds left in the second quarter and the Sixers trailing, 32-29. He replaced Matisse Thybulle, who had picked up his third foul. Korkmaz played only 2:13 and was 0-for-2, with both shots three-pointers. He didn’t play the rest of the game.

If Korkmaz isn’t hitting from the outside, he provides very little for the Sixers. Right now, he is in a serious slump. In his last five games, he is 3-for-21 from beyond the arc (14.3%).

Now in his fourth season with the Sixers, the 6-foot-7 Korkmaz saw his first significant extended time last season and shot 40.2% from three-point range. This year, he is shooting 30.8%.

Was Rivers giving Joe a look, or was it a tryout for more rotation minutes?

“It’s just a look. I mean everyone earns their minutes,” the Sixers’ coach said. “It is always a fair competition. Right now, we’re going with Isaiah.”

Against the Raptors, Joe played 12:28 and shot 1-for-2, both from three-point range. He had two rebounds and a minus-9 rating. Like Korkmaz, the 6-4 Joe has earned his minutes with his shooting, but Rivers also praised his defense.

“I thought defensively … he was absolutely fantastic and that’s what we need,” Rivers said. “This is not football. You got to be a basketball player and play both ways, offense and defense, so I thought he did that tonight.”

Joe even got some fourth-quarter time. With the Sixers trailing, 102-94, he entered with 5:48 left. He missed a three-pointer and played 2:18 in the fourth.

Joe has slowly been seeing more time the last few games. He played 12:26 in Wednesday’s 118-113 win over Houston and 6:25 in Friday’s 112-105 victory over Chicago.

A second-round pick from Arkansas, Joe is also known for his shooting. He has connected on 22 of 59 three-pointers (37.3%). That is slightly above the NBA average, which was 36.8% entering Sunday.

Rivers obviously feels Joe also gives the Sixers more on the defensive end than Korkmaz.

With the way the bench has been playing, only Shake Milton, Thybulle, and Dwight Howard should expect consistent minutes, although none of them played very well against Toronto. Milton, after missing the previous five games with a sprained left ankle, was a game-worst minus-24, and Thybulle was minus-23. Howard was minus-3 in 10:11.

Rookie first-round pick Tyrese Maxey didn’t play for the second time in the last seven games. Veteran Mike Scott also didn’t play.

There is little question that president of basketball operations Daryl Morey will make at least one move to give the Sixers better depth before the March 25 trade deadline.

The Sixers also have to make sure they don’t wear out Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Tobias Harris in the regular season.

Against Toronto, Simmons, after missing the previous two games because of illness, played 38:32. Harris played 37:15 and Embiid, 36.16.

Embiid is averaging 32.8 minutes, the second-highest total of his career, but in his last five games, he is averaging 35.9.

Harris is averaging 34.6 minutes, just below his career-high of 34.8 in 2014-15. He is averaging 37.6 minutes in his last seven games. Simmons averages 33.6 minutes, the lowest in his career. He is averaging 37.1 minutes in his last four games.

All have increased their minutes lately mainly because of the lack of bench production. Joe is the latest beneficiary of extended minutes, but nothing is assured long-term for the Sixers’ reserves.