March 24, 2024
Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sports
Tobias Harris had a much-needed resurgence against former teammate James Harden and the Los Angeles Clippers Sunday afternoon.
Looking to avoid a third consecutive loss, the Sixers faced the Los Angeles Clippers Sunday afternoon, in what was their first matchup against former Sixers guard James Harden since he was dealt to LA at the beginning of the season. They put together one of their best efforts of the season, defeating the Clippers 121-107. Here is what stood out from this one:
The Sixers had a bad taste in their mouths after scoring just 18 points in the fourth quarter in their loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night. They erased it with a monstrous 41-point first quarter against the Clippers. Tobias Harris — who scored the first seven points of the game — scored 11 points on seven shots in the period. Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 10 points and dished out three assists. The team shot a combined 7-9 from beyond the arc, and it was not just a product of outlier shot-making: the Sixers were consistently generating good looks, particularly from three-point range in what was by far the best quarter of offense they have played since Joel Embiid went down in January.
Harris was the headliner considering the fashion in which he opened the game -- especially after an abysmal 6-18 shooting line in his return to action on Friday night. But Oubre, who had the same line, also stepped up: he knocked down consecutive corner threes and even dished out three first quarter assists. Cam Payne once again gave the Sixers a noteworthy offensive punch off the bench. Mo Bamba only scored three points in the first quarter, but grabbed seven rebounds and swatted two shots. Things might be finally coming together for Bamba.
Because of how much firepower the Clippers have on the perimeter — Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are all lethal threats on offense — Sixers head coach Nick Nurse relied on his wings to hold it down defensively: Harris took the Leonard assignment while Oubre Jr. spent time on both George and Harden. KJ Martin, who has mostly been used as a big in recent weeks, was also deployed on the wing, as his athleticism and strength make him an ideal defender to put on some of the league's greatest and largest wings.
While Nic Batum was active for this game and had no injury designation entering the contest, it became clear early on that the former Clippers wing was only available in case of an emergency. On Feb. 23, the Sixers did similar, as Batum sat for the entire game... until the final minute of the game, in which he came in for 3.3 seconds. Batum, the team's best inbounds passer, was tasked with getting the ball in play that night and that was it.
With Batum out, two-way guard Jeff Dowtin Jr. entered the rotation. Nurse seems to have a lot of trust in Dowtin considering his two-way status, likely stemming from the time they shared in Toronto last season. Dowtin has surpassed fellow two-way guard Terquavion Smith on the depth chart -- Smith did not even travel with the Sixers for this west coast trip, instead getting game action for the G-League Delaware Blue Coats.
If there is one thing Oubre has not been known for in his career, it is passing. Oubre is extremely aggressive in seeking out his own shot on offense, but even when he draws the attention of the defense and opens up a passing lane he generally focuses on his own opportunity.
Oubre entered this contest with at least three assists in his last three games. That may sound insignificant — three is not a massive number, after all — but Oubre was averaging just 1.2 assists per game entering that stretch. Oubre had a season-high five assists by halftime (his career-best is seven), leveraging his uncanny ability to get to the rim to create quality looks for others. Oubre will never be John Stockton, but as he shoulders an increased scoring load in Embiid's absence, it is quite helpful that he is also beginning to distribute the ball a bit more often.
With Embiid sidelined, the Sixers remain starved for offense, particularly in the half-court. Maxey is reliable and Harris bounced back in this one, but another guy who continues to step up is Payne, who reached double-digit points for the fourth time in his last six contests. In fact, he far surpassed just getting into double-digits, posting 23 big ones. Payne's role in the postseason remains unclear, but for now he has settled in as an integral piece of the rotation.
In several recent losses, the Sixers have completely fallen apart in the fourth quarter, especially on the offensive end of the floor. Truthfully, it seemed like this one would go in that direction as well. But a lineup featuring Maxey, Payne, Harris, Martin and Paul Reed absolutely dominated the Clippers in the opening minutes of the period, eventually putting the game out of reach.
This was about as encouraging of a game as the Sixers could have played: Maxey turned it on after initially being quiet, several role players stepped up in big ways, the Sixers controlled most of the game, responded to a massive Clippers run by putting together one of their own, and in doing so knocking off one of the best teams in the NBA.
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