Sixers mailbag: Joel Embiid’s defense and limitations, Paul George’s expected role, and more
Embiid's lateral movement should improve as he continues to work back from knee surgery earlier this year. Meanwhile, George should thrive as a secondary ball handler and defender when he returns.
The 76ers have completed their losing teams’ portion of their early-season schedule.
They crushed the Brooklyn Nets, 129-105, on Sunday night at the Barclays Center. It was the Sixers’ sixth game of the season. And all of their opponents have losing records.
But the Nets are tied with the New Orleans Pelicans for the worst record in the NBA at 0-6.
The Sixers’ other opponents — the Boston Celtics (twice), Charlotte Hornets, Orlando Magic, and Washington Wizards - had a combined 10-17 record.
The Celtics, Magic, and Hornets are all 3-4, while the Wizards are 1-5.
Now, the Sixers (5-1) will face the Chicago Bulls in an Eastern Conference first-place showdown on Tuesday at the United Center. The Bulls dropped to 5-1 after Sunday’s 128-116 road loss to the New York Knicks.
Afterward, the Sixers will face the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday at Rocket Arena before returning home to face the Toronto Raptors (Saturday) and Detroit Pistons (Sunday) at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The Cavs are 4-3 after Sunday’s home victory over the Atlanta Hawks. The Raptors are the only team with a losing record that the Sixers will face during their upcoming stretch. They improved to 3-4 after Sunday’s home victory against the Memphis Grizzlies. Meanwhile, the Pistons are 4-2.
» READ MORE: Will VJ Edgecombe reach his full potential while the Sixers figure out what Joel Embiid has left in tank?
We’ll find out in the coming days if the Sixers can keep their winning ways while facing stiffer competition.
In the meantime, I’ll answer a few of your mailbag questions.
Missed out on the party? No worries. Submit questions for next time by tweeting @PompeyOnSixers to X with the hashtag #PompeysMailbagFlow.
Q: Is there still any lingering issue with Joel Embiid? He doesn’t do the tipoff, and he doesn’t leave his feet in the paint. If that’s the case, he’s more of a liability at this point. — @TheMarcusGraham
A: Thanks for starting the mailbag, Marcus. I do believe there could be lingering issues with Embiid’s left knee. I guess that’s to be expected for a 31-year-old, who in April had his second left-knee surgery in 14 months and third in nine years. But I think this is something Embiid and the Sixers hope they can manage over time.
You are correct that Embiid rarely jumps to contest shots or goes after rebounds. He jumped more on defense in Friday’s 109-108 home loss to the Boston Celtics than in his previous three games. He also finished with a season-high two blocks. So that was a positive.
We are seeing Embiid rely on his 7-foot-2, 280-pound frame to try to overpower opponents. And his lack of lateral movement has enabled players he used to dominate to get easy buckets while he’s in the game. The Sixers should give him enough time to try to improve in that area.
» READ MORE: Sixers takeaways: Kelly Oubre Jr. is the X factor, Tyrese Maxey’s early case for MVP, and more from win over Nets
We should truly learn by the end of November that Embiid’s current play is just a result of getting back into things, or if there’s some long-term lingering effects he’s dealing with.
Q: Do you think PG can embrace a new role of catch and shoot or catch and drive/kick instead of his normal 14-second dribbling exhibition into a contested fadeaway jumper? — @E_Krawl
A: What’s up, Erik? I’m not sure if Paul George will embrace the role of a catch-and-shoot player. I also don’t think that would be a great use of his skill set. George can thrive as a secondary ball handler, setting up teammates for scoring opportunities. I understand your question about 14-second dribbling. But when you think about it, that mainly happened on teams where he was one of the primary scoring options. This squad is loaded with players who can score. So he won’t have to dominate the ball. I think people forget that George signed with the Sixers last summer with the expectation of helping Tyrese Maxey as a secondary ball handler, scoring when needed, and excelling on defense. I think that’s a role that could still set up nicely for him once he makes his season debut after left knee surgery recovery.
Q: What are your thoughts on whether the defense will improve when they’re ’fully healthy’? Will they need to rely on scoring 125 a game all season? — @seamuskilleen
A: Great question, Seamus. The defense should improve when the Sixers are fully healthy. They were 26th in the league with a defensive rating of 118.4 heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Nets. They were also 22nd in the league in scoring defense, surrendering 120.8 points per game. That’s an area they should improve when fully healthy.
Sixers coach Nick Nurse has already raved about the impact that George has made on defense at practice. The six-time All-Defensive selection will give the defense a boost. The Sixers can assign him to guard one of the opposing team’s top perimeter players,
VJ Edgecombe has shown signs that he can be a solid defender, while reserve center Adem Bona is one of the league’s best shot blockers.
Q: Why was Embiid out [Sunday]? —@Ordca3Cord
A: It’s all about being cautious, Cord. The Sixers don’t want him to have setbacks. And let’s face it, they shouldn’t need him to beat the Nets. Now, one can argue that Embiid should play against the Nets, take off Wednesday’s game against the Bulls, and return for Thursday’s matchup against the Cavaliers.
By missing Sunday’s game, one has to assume that Embiid will play Tuesday and sit out Wednesday’s contest due to not playing on back-to-back nights.
Missing Sunday’s matchup enables Embiid to have at least two days in between games to rest his knee.
» READ MORE: The Sixers aren’t surprised by their hot start. But everyone else is — and for good reason.
Again, the Sixers don’t want to have any setbacks. Their goal is to deliver a healthy Embiid to the postseason. As a result, we’ll see him miss a bunch of games throughout this season.