WEBVTT - Game 2 Reaction! Sixers 96, Nets 84 0:00:00.280 --> 0:00:03.840 This podcast is part of the seventy six Ers podcast network. 0:00:03.640 --> 0:00:06.840 Search seventy six Ers Insiders wherever you get your podcasts. 0:00:07.360 --> 0:00:15.040 Day everybody, I'm feeling love. Yeah, seventy six. 0:00:16.440 --> 0:00:16.560 Up. 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:21.560 Good morning everybody, Welcome back to another post Sixers win reaction. 0:00:21.800 --> 0:00:24.120 I'm Lauren Rosen, Matt Murphy's here. We are live on 0:00:24.160 --> 0:00:26.440 Twitter spaces. We will also be on the seventy six 0:00:26.480 --> 0:00:29.479 Ers Insiders podcast feed, So if you come late or 0:00:29.480 --> 0:00:31.840 if you leave early, you can always catch the show 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:35.200 on seventy six Ers Insiders if you're not already subscribed there. 0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:36.760 Matt Murphy, good morning. How are you? 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:39.879 Lauren Rosen? Good morning, how are you. I'm doing well. 0:00:40.159 --> 0:00:43.239 Ninety six eighty four win for the Sixers against the 0:00:43.240 --> 0:00:45.559 Brooklyn Nets a two to zero series lead in this 0:00:45.760 --> 0:00:50.320 Eastern Conference first round series. The keyword has been trust 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:55.680 around the Sixers, particularly with Game two, and how they're 0:00:55.720 --> 0:00:58.880 trusting one another to make the right plays, make the 0:00:58.960 --> 0:01:02.160 right passes. They overcame a deficit in this one, down 0:01:02.200 --> 0:01:04.800 as many as ten points late in the first half, 0:01:05.280 --> 0:01:09.360 down five at halftime, but they rallied. They made it 0:01:09.520 --> 0:01:14.360 six straight playoff wins over Brooklyn dating back historically, and 0:01:14.400 --> 0:01:16.600 also they went four to zero in the regular season, 0:01:16.640 --> 0:01:19.000 so the Sixers have had the nets number for a 0:01:19.040 --> 0:01:22.080 while now, and they were able to mount a comeback, 0:01:22.640 --> 0:01:27.120 primarily with the help of Tyrese Maxi, who went off 0:01:27.319 --> 0:01:28.880 for a game high thirty three. 0:01:29.880 --> 0:01:32.839 Tyrese Maxi was the man of the hour. Tobias Harris 0:01:32.880 --> 0:01:35.520 was great last night. Joel Embiid nineteen rebounds on a 0:01:35.600 --> 0:01:38.240 quiet night. Two quiet nights for Joel Embiid in games 0:01:38.319 --> 0:01:41.240 one and two, and he's been absolutely awesome. Nevertheless, let's 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:43.560 get into the box score now. Guys, if you look 0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:45.360 at the bottom right hand corner of the space, you 0:01:45.400 --> 0:01:47.880 can add a question or a comment in that using 0:01:47.880 --> 0:01:51.640 that left or rather bottom right hand corner purple icon. 0:01:51.680 --> 0:01:54.000 You can also send Matt or myself a DM and 0:01:54.000 --> 0:01:55.360 we will try to get to as many of them 0:01:55.360 --> 0:01:58.640 as we possibly can throughout the next twenty to thirty 0:01:58.640 --> 0:02:00.720 minutes or so. But with out for their due, I'm 0:02:00.760 --> 0:02:02.919 going to go through the box score. If anyone inspires 0:02:02.920 --> 0:02:05.760 a question or a comment, please drop it below or 0:02:05.800 --> 0:02:08.760 send it in a DM. We'll run through last night's 0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:11.720 key contributors, starting with Matt mentioned it. Tyrese Maxy a 0:02:11.760 --> 0:02:15.720 team high thirty three points for Young Tyrese in forty minutes. 0:02:15.760 --> 0:02:18.519 That was a team high as well. He also grabbed 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:20.240 three rebounds. He had a block. He finished at a 0:02:20.280 --> 0:02:24.320 team high plus seventeen, shooting thirteen for twenty three from 0:02:24.360 --> 0:02:27.000 the field, six for thirteen from three point range. That 0:02:27.200 --> 0:02:31.720 is his new playoff career high in threes for Tyrese Maxy. 0:02:31.960 --> 0:02:34.920 Joel Andbid and Tobias Harris had twenty points a piece. 0:02:35.000 --> 0:02:38.640 Joelle finishes with a massive twenty point nineteen rebound double 0:02:38.720 --> 0:02:42.000 double plus seven assists, a steal and three blocks. He 0:02:42.040 --> 0:02:44.440 shot six for eleven from the floor, eight for eight 0:02:44.840 --> 0:02:47.399 from the free throw line, and finished at plus fourteen 0:02:47.440 --> 0:02:51.840 and thirty seven minutes to Bias twelve or twelve rebounds 0:02:51.880 --> 0:02:55.400 to add to his twenty points plus two assists a 0:02:55.520 --> 0:02:58.920 steal finishes plus nine eight for fourteen from the field 0:02:58.960 --> 0:03:02.480 thirty three minutes of play. He becomes the only sixer 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:05.720 to or besides Joel rather the second sixer to score 0:03:05.720 --> 0:03:09.239 twenty plus in both games one and to James Harden 0:03:09.240 --> 0:03:12.440 finished with eight points, five rebounds, seven assists, and a 0:03:12.480 --> 0:03:16.320 team high four steals. A quieter shooting night from James, 0:03:16.320 --> 0:03:18.680 but able to get his teammates involved when it mattered 0:03:19.040 --> 0:03:22.080 down the stretch. D Anthony Melton finished with a bench 0:03:22.160 --> 0:03:25.519 high nine points. Two for five from three to twenty 0:03:25.560 --> 0:03:28.640 one minutes marked a not a bench high. Jalen McDaniels 0:03:28.639 --> 0:03:31.640 twenty two minutes marked a bench high in minutes. PJ. 0:03:31.760 --> 0:03:35.360 Tucker had eight rebounds and three assists in his twenty 0:03:35.360 --> 0:03:38.040 two minutes of play. Matt what stood out most to 0:03:38.080 --> 0:03:41.160 you this one was an absolute It was tough for 0:03:41.200 --> 0:03:42.920 the Sixers to get it done. They did not like 0:03:43.000 --> 0:03:45.480 how they played in the first half, but understanding how 0:03:45.520 --> 0:03:47.560 much they didn't like their play, to be able to 0:03:47.600 --> 0:03:50.040 pull a win out in the playoffs nevertheless a very 0:03:50.040 --> 0:03:50.920 impressive thing to do. 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:53.480 You and I have been talking a lot about how 0:03:53.520 --> 0:03:56.160 this Sixers team all year. There were some games that 0:03:56.200 --> 0:03:59.040 they came back in and they've shown that they can 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:02.000 win in different ways. And how important is that for 0:04:02.080 --> 0:04:06.320 the NBA postseason, where it's just a different type of basketball. 0:04:06.400 --> 0:04:10.040 It's so much fun to watch. I'm sure it's intense 0:04:10.120 --> 0:04:12.240 to be out there, obviously based on what we see 0:04:12.320 --> 0:04:14.760 and what we hear from the players, but to prove 0:04:14.800 --> 0:04:18.120 you can win in different ways, when there's adjustments made 0:04:18.200 --> 0:04:20.919 each and every single game around the best player in 0:04:20.960 --> 0:04:24.120 the world in Joel Embiid, arguably the best player, likely 0:04:24.160 --> 0:04:28.000 the MVP. I feel comfortable saying that, but knock on 0:04:28.080 --> 0:04:31.680 wood of course Sixers fans. But when he's drawing so 0:04:31.760 --> 0:04:34.400 much attention, I already see some questions and comments about 0:04:34.640 --> 0:04:39.080 Joel's rebounding and assist totals coming in he was able 0:04:39.120 --> 0:04:42.599 to get his teammates involved. The team can win in 0:04:42.760 --> 0:04:45.640 different ways, and it's what good teams do is win 0:04:45.680 --> 0:04:49.040 a game like Game two against Brooklyn. My box score takeaway, 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:53.080 it's the five offensive rebounds for Tobias Harris on a 0:04:53.160 --> 0:04:58.039 twelve rebound night, because yet again, second chance points were 0:04:58.040 --> 0:05:02.640 a big factor. How about this eighteen to zero in 0:05:02.680 --> 0:05:04.960 favor of the Sixers for second chance points? 0:05:07.560 --> 0:05:10.320 Big time, absolutely, big time. A couple of those in 0:05:10.520 --> 0:05:12.240 between games one and two. Sorry, Matt, was that the 0:05:12.320 --> 0:05:13.680 end of the thought? You got more? 0:05:13.839 --> 0:05:15.000 That was the end of the thought? 0:05:15.200 --> 0:05:17.839 But it was like I didn't want to cut you off. Yeah, 0:05:17.920 --> 0:05:22.120 I mean, and Matt absorbing the turnover problems as well, 0:05:22.160 --> 0:05:24.560 that they had more in the first half, but also 0:05:24.640 --> 0:05:27.320 in the second half and figuring out ways to get 0:05:27.320 --> 0:05:28.919 it done if you're cool with it. I'd love to 0:05:29.000 --> 0:05:32.720 hear from Tyrese Maxi, who was the leading scorer last night. 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:37.440 Yeah, you mentioned turnovers, and Jock Vaughan, the Nets coach, postgame, 0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:41.640 talked about how they did so many things better than 0:05:41.640 --> 0:05:43.640 they did in Game one, like that they won the 0:05:43.640 --> 0:05:47.040 turnover battle this time, for example, being one of those things. 0:05:47.360 --> 0:05:49.680 And yet the Sixers win by double digits. So I 0:05:49.680 --> 0:05:52.440 think that says a lot because they corrected things and 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:55.880 then the Sixers did other things well. Again the sign 0:05:55.960 --> 0:05:59.960 of a strong contender. But go ahead, let's hear from Tyree's. 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:03.760 I think first of all, we shot. 0:06:04.440 --> 0:06:07.400 We didn't shoot great from the field, but we were 0:06:07.440 --> 0:06:09.640 able to get stops time. We stopped when we needed him, 0:06:10.480 --> 0:06:12.800 contecutive stops in the road which led too fast rate, 0:06:12.800 --> 0:06:15.160 which led to easy buckets, and uh us being able 0:06:15.160 --> 0:06:15.920 to set our defense. 0:06:16.400 --> 0:06:18.000 You know, they made some adjustments as far as how 0:06:18.000 --> 0:06:19.719 they were trapping and how they were playing def uh 0:06:19.800 --> 0:06:21.080 defense and defending guys. 0:06:21.960 --> 0:06:24.159 You know, it kind of comes by surprise in the 0:06:24.160 --> 0:06:26.320 first half, and then we went in and made adjustment 0:06:26.360 --> 0:06:27.800 to the second half and think. 0:06:27.680 --> 0:06:28.159 We were good. 0:06:28.279 --> 0:06:30.760 What was the message at halftime with you guys and 0:06:30.760 --> 0:06:32.320 and why did you need that time out? 0:06:32.320 --> 0:06:34.719 And then it in to kind of get that sparkle 0:06:34.760 --> 0:06:37.000 on for the second half. Yeah, So defensively we were 0:06:37.040 --> 0:06:37.560 doing really good. 0:06:37.680 --> 0:06:39.200 I mean, I think we would have 'em to under 0:06:39.200 --> 0:06:41.359 fifty points in the first in the first half, but 0:06:41.480 --> 0:06:43.320 our offense wasn't. Uh, it was a match of our 0:06:43.320 --> 0:06:45.640 same level of defense, and uh we had to find 0:06:45.680 --> 0:06:48.360 ways to get guys in space, get guys in the 0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:50.599 right spot to 'em, you know. In Joe, Well, we 0:06:50.640 --> 0:06:52.480 had to be in Joelle's vision for when they trapped 0:06:52.520 --> 0:06:54.520 him to help him out, and I think we did that. 0:06:55.480 --> 0:06:58.159 Jen what he struggled again tonight. Is there any sort 0:06:58.200 --> 0:07:00.520 of specific points of emphasis that you have when you're 0:07:00.560 --> 0:07:03.040 guarding him. I just try to pressure him. 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:06.120 He's like three point inches taller than me, so if 0:07:06.120 --> 0:07:07.760 I can get under him and try to pressure him 0:07:07.800 --> 0:07:09.360 and uh try to force me to shoot the mid 0:07:09.400 --> 0:07:10.000 twos over me. 0:07:10.560 --> 0:07:12.200 I mean, that's that's that's what I try to do. 0:07:12.240 --> 0:07:14.400 There's no really no special secret to it. I'm just 0:07:14.400 --> 0:07:15.240 trying to play defense. 0:07:15.400 --> 0:07:18.160 So just wadn't seen you show emotion the way that 0:07:18.200 --> 0:07:19.920 you did after that and one in the third quarter 0:07:20.040 --> 0:07:21.880 in a pretty long time. Can you take us through 0:07:21.880 --> 0:07:24.720 sort of what led to that exhale of emotion? 0:07:25.200 --> 0:07:26.600 Yeah, man, I I just wanna win. 0:07:26.760 --> 0:07:29.640 Man, It's like, and uh, we knew this was an 0:07:29.640 --> 0:07:31.840 important game, you know, Tuck said it as soon as 0:07:31.840 --> 0:07:33.920 we won game one that game two is gonna be 0:07:33.920 --> 0:07:36.480 the hardest game, and we wanted to go make sure 0:07:36.520 --> 0:07:38.840 that we protected home court. I mean we started off slow, 0:07:39.240 --> 0:07:40.880 like we talked about, Uh, but we went to the 0:07:40.920 --> 0:07:43.800 half only down five. As bad as we played offensively, 0:07:43.840 --> 0:07:46.320 we only down five points. And we knew that, uh, 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:48.000 if we can catch if we get our offense to 0:07:48.080 --> 0:07:50.440 catch up to our defense and continue to be stating 0:07:50.480 --> 0:07:52.240 you on defense, and we knew we had a shot. 0:07:52.640 --> 0:07:57.600 She might you got a lot of threes. He all though, 0:07:57.680 --> 0:08:00.360 free program and handle adults. Is that sort of what 0:08:00.480 --> 0:08:02.200 the message does? He's interesting. 0:08:06.200 --> 0:08:10.520 That was Tyrese Maxi from last night, Matt. I think 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:13.160 we might still be having connectivity issues, but I'm not 0:08:13.200 --> 0:08:15.160 sure if you had somewhere you wanted to head next. 0:08:15.160 --> 0:08:19.320 While I check that out, Mary had a comment about 0:08:19.400 --> 0:08:25.280 Tyrese Maxi's defense, said Tyresee was terrific. Offensively, but also 0:08:25.360 --> 0:08:29.720 his defense on Dinwittie was remarkable. So I think back 0:08:29.760 --> 0:08:33.559 to when his teammates were calling him two way Tyressee 0:08:34.640 --> 0:08:38.360 shouting out his defensive improvements in year three at different 0:08:38.400 --> 0:08:42.240 points in the regular season, and that's of course important 0:08:43.040 --> 0:08:46.720 in the playoffs as well. And that's another thing. I 0:08:46.760 --> 0:08:49.120 keep going back to the Nets postgame and kind of 0:08:49.200 --> 0:08:54.160 like what they're saying about this series and to have 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:58.120 Joel Embiid draw so much attention. It's not to say 0:08:58.160 --> 0:09:02.280 the Nets sounded surprise that Tyrese Maxey had a thirty 0:09:02.440 --> 0:09:05.760 plus point game, but he's done it so much that 0:09:06.160 --> 0:09:08.640 when they say things like, oh, credit to Tyrese Maxey 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:10.920 for showing up and making shots, it's like, he's not 0:09:11.000 --> 0:09:14.320 a guy you can you can just leave open in 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:17.800 certain situations. And he was making some different types of 0:09:17.840 --> 0:09:22.000 threes and things like that. But that's a great sign 0:09:22.040 --> 0:09:24.600 for the Sixers that when you're trying to take everything 0:09:24.600 --> 0:09:28.280 else away and that's giving prime opportunities to a player 0:09:28.320 --> 0:09:31.640 as skilled as Tyrese Maxey on the offensive end, and 0:09:31.720 --> 0:09:34.680 that's the player that they're saying afterwards, credit to him. 0:09:35.120 --> 0:09:37.240 He's going to make you pay more times than not, 0:09:37.360 --> 0:09:40.120 so that was a huge takeaway for me for the 0:09:40.200 --> 0:09:43.559 rest of this series. Him and Tobias Harris were crucial 0:09:43.679 --> 0:09:45.000 to the game to win. 0:09:46.120 --> 0:09:49.440 Yeah, underestimating Tyrese Maxey not a smart thing to do 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:53.400 in the playoffs, as he has proven now three years running. 0:09:53.440 --> 0:09:55.040 And good to see him, of course, after a quieter 0:09:55.120 --> 0:09:58.240 Game one, come out in game two and show what 0:09:58.320 --> 0:10:01.720 he's able to do, especially on nights when other sixers 0:10:01.760 --> 0:10:04.120 perhaps are a little bit quieter. But someone who hasn't 0:10:04.120 --> 0:10:06.440 been quiet, Matt, you mentioned Tobias Harris. Let's go through 0:10:06.440 --> 0:10:08.120 his playoff run thus far, and of course it's only 0:10:08.120 --> 0:10:12.000 been two games, but they have been too nearly identical, 0:10:12.120 --> 0:10:16.640 not identical out on the floor, but very similar performances 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:20.040 for Tobias Harris in his first two games. Game one 0:10:20.120 --> 0:10:23.679 on Saturday, Tobias in his twenty nine minutes had twenty 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:27.160 one points, four assists, and a block. He shot nine 0:10:27.280 --> 0:10:29.560 for fourteen from the field, and I said identical, Sorry, 0:10:29.679 --> 0:10:33.000 I mean shooting numbers, of course. Is rebounding got much 0:10:33.000 --> 0:10:36.400 better in game two, a twenty point twelve rebound double 0:10:36.440 --> 0:10:39.200 double plus two assists and a steal in Game two, 0:10:39.240 --> 0:10:42.280 but eight for fourteen from the field, so shooting sixty 0:10:42.280 --> 0:10:46.400 four percent on Night one, fifty seven percent on Night two. 0:10:46.440 --> 0:10:49.880 Tobias Harris has been absolutely solid for this team. Doc 0:10:50.000 --> 0:10:52.720 Rivers give him credit once again for the defensive work, 0:10:53.440 --> 0:10:57.400 drawing tough defensive assignments in this series so far. But Matt, 0:10:57.400 --> 0:11:00.280 what have you seen from Tobias Harris that's excited you. 0:11:01.520 --> 0:11:05.200 I thought his aggressive start to the second game in 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:08.360 this series was huge because the big question there's been 0:11:08.400 --> 0:11:11.760 some questions during spaces here that have come in live 0:11:11.880 --> 0:11:17.160 about the Nets defensive approach on embiid and would they 0:11:17.320 --> 0:11:20.280 go back to those double teams early and often? And 0:11:20.320 --> 0:11:23.640 the answer was that they did. And there was an 0:11:23.720 --> 0:11:27.480 and one for Tobias Harris right away where he looked 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:30.559 into the crowd and did the count it symbol and 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:34.880 or gesture rather. And I thought his aggressive start, that's 0:11:34.920 --> 0:11:37.760 the type of Tobias Harris that you need. And then 0:11:38.360 --> 0:11:41.480 he played a big role in that third quarter stretch 0:11:41.679 --> 0:11:44.280 twenty to five run in the third quarter. Again they 0:11:44.320 --> 0:11:47.880 trailed by five at halftime and by ten just before 0:11:47.920 --> 0:11:51.560 that in the second quarter. How much fun was the 0:11:51.640 --> 0:11:55.400 arena like during that time? It was amazing. That run 0:11:55.480 --> 0:12:00.120 for the Sixers the first home night game of this 0:12:00.200 --> 0:12:05.440 postseason run. And to to come back and have Embiid 0:12:05.480 --> 0:12:09.400 passing out of these double teams, some critical offensive rebounds 0:12:09.400 --> 0:12:13.199 for PJ. Tucker too, to keep possessions alive. He didn't 0:12:13.440 --> 0:12:15.560 he didn't make the threes that he made in Game one, 0:12:15.640 --> 0:12:19.520 but again timely rebounds to set up some Maxi threes, 0:12:19.600 --> 0:12:22.040 set up the Harris three, set up a big, hardened 0:12:22.040 --> 0:12:25.240 three during that stretch and that third quarter run, the 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:26.200 building came alive. 0:12:27.400 --> 0:12:30.000 Yeah, that third quarter was a lot of fun the building, 0:12:30.000 --> 0:12:32.400 of course, not as thrilled at halftime or when the 0:12:32.440 --> 0:12:35.160 Sixers fell fell by double digits in the first half, 0:12:35.160 --> 0:12:36.760 and then to see them sort of come around and 0:12:36.800 --> 0:12:40.800 be that loud, raucous, energetic crowd that the team was 0:12:40.880 --> 0:12:44.160 waiting for two and earned in the third quarter was 0:12:44.200 --> 0:12:46.440 a lot of fun. Drew said, Toby is the key. 0:12:46.520 --> 0:12:48.600 If he keeps playing like this on both ends of 0:12:48.600 --> 0:12:50.800 the court, we have a real shot at the finals. 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:52.720 And Matt, you and I talked about it before the series. 0:12:52.920 --> 0:12:56.199 Teams are gonna game plan prior priority, priority wise for 0:12:56.400 --> 0:12:59.000 Joelle Embiid first. Then they're gonna look at James Harden 0:12:59.040 --> 0:13:01.560 and if they do a good guarding those two guys, 0:13:02.080 --> 0:13:03.880 that means the Sixers are are going to be in 0:13:03.880 --> 0:13:07.440 a position where they need to prioritize guys like Tyrese Maxey, 0:13:07.600 --> 0:13:09.600 like Tobias Harris. And if those guys can have big 0:13:09.720 --> 0:13:12.880 nights on nights when Joel or James is quieter or 0:13:12.880 --> 0:13:16.199 it's well defended, well game planned by their opponent, If 0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:20.360 Tobias and Tyrese can make defensive defenses pay for the 0:13:20.400 --> 0:13:23.720 attention they're giving to James and Joel, the Sixers might 0:13:23.800 --> 0:13:26.960 be set for a long run. It's been awesome to 0:13:27.040 --> 0:13:29.200 watch them thus far, watch them make the adjustments that 0:13:29.200 --> 0:13:29.959 they needed to make. 0:13:30.280 --> 0:13:32.920 Harris was in the dunker spot for a lot of 0:13:32.920 --> 0:13:34.880 the night and he did say after that that was 0:13:34.920 --> 0:13:39.040 a new thing for him and just different types of 0:13:39.040 --> 0:13:43.240 offensive plays where he was down there by the block 0:13:43.320 --> 0:13:47.440 and making sometimes the extra pass to the opposite corner. 0:13:47.520 --> 0:13:50.520 These guys were lethal from the corners, Harris and Maxi, 0:13:51.160 --> 0:13:54.160 and Tucker's going to have his nights on this night 0:13:54.200 --> 0:13:58.000 in particular, Tucker and Paul Reid and Harris crashing the 0:13:58.040 --> 0:14:00.640 offensive glass. That was kind of the leading trio for 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:04.160 offensive rebounds, so on the few threes that you're not 0:14:04.160 --> 0:14:06.320 always going to hit twenty one threes like Game one, 0:14:06.920 --> 0:14:09.440 but it is a very strong shooting team, the highest 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:12.560 five percentage from three point range in the regular season, 0:14:12.640 --> 0:14:16.119 so it is dangerous for opposing teams as these sixers 0:14:16.400 --> 0:14:19.480 continue hitting their stride in the playoffs. They were able 0:14:19.480 --> 0:14:22.760 to heat up in a hurry in the second half, 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:25.360 and it was encouraging now that they head on the 0:14:25.440 --> 0:14:29.400 road to Brooklyn and Embiid thought came in from champ 0:14:29.600 --> 0:14:32.000 and I pose it to you. How do you feel 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:34.440 about Embiid making up for lack of points with the 0:14:34.520 --> 0:14:38.200 nineteen rebounds and the seven assists. Joelle likes when he 0:14:38.240 --> 0:14:40.280 can get that assist count up. 0:14:41.480 --> 0:14:44.040 He was cooking on the boards though early on in 0:14:44.080 --> 0:14:46.600 the night, getting up to fifteen I believe at halftime 0:14:48.240 --> 0:14:50.360 and seeing again. Joel has talked about it sort of 0:14:50.360 --> 0:14:52.960 time and time again, figuring out ways to impact the 0:14:52.960 --> 0:14:55.920 game even if a defense is stifling one of his skills. 0:14:55.920 --> 0:14:58.280 And it's not that they've been stifling his scoring necessarily, 0:14:58.280 --> 0:15:00.600 but when they're bringing doubles and triples as frequently as 0:15:00.640 --> 0:15:03.440 the Brooklyn Nuts have been bringing them to Joel embiid. 0:15:03.480 --> 0:15:06.560 He needs to sort of dial into those other skills, 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:10.120 and he's shown that he can do it. You mentioned 0:15:10.160 --> 0:15:14.720 PJ Tucker briefly. PJ obviously has been super super vocal 0:15:14.880 --> 0:15:16.640 out on the floor. We've seen it, and then in 0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:19.560 the locker room, the guys have talked about it. I'm 0:15:19.560 --> 0:15:23.000 calling back to game one. He had a strongly worded conversation. 0:15:23.200 --> 0:15:25.760 He told us with Paul Reid at halftime he didn't 0:15:25.800 --> 0:15:27.880 like the energy he was bringing in the first half, 0:15:28.080 --> 0:15:31.160 not playing with enough confidence, not being disruptive enough, and 0:15:31.240 --> 0:15:34.040 had some strong words for Paul at halftime, and then 0:15:34.080 --> 0:15:37.280 of course Paul comes out and responds immediately. And then 0:15:37.320 --> 0:15:41.240 I liked what Tyrese Maxey said following the game last night. 0:15:42.160 --> 0:15:45.720 He said that PJ. Tucker had sort of gathered the 0:15:45.720 --> 0:15:48.680 guys together after game one and said, here's the quote. 0:15:49.360 --> 0:15:51.240 PJ Tucker said, as soon as we won game one 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:54.320 that game two was going to be the hardest game. 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.480 Tyree's talked about the emotion that he showed last night. 0:15:57.520 --> 0:16:00.200 He said he just wants to win, and p J 0:16:00.320 --> 0:16:03.560 Tucker has proven time and time again on a variety 0:16:03.560 --> 0:16:05.800 of teams that he just wants to win as well. 0:16:05.920 --> 0:16:09.200 So really cool to see to see PJ sort of 0:16:09.320 --> 0:16:11.400 putting the team on his back out on the floor, 0:16:11.440 --> 0:16:14.160 creating those extra opportunities, like you said, Matt, but then 0:16:14.200 --> 0:16:16.640 clearly bringing them together off the floor in the moments 0:16:16.680 --> 0:16:18.360 that we can't hear as fans. 0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:23.200 We've gotten a good amount of engagement today from Sixers 0:16:23.240 --> 0:16:26.160 fans kind of taking their analysis a step further, asking 0:16:26.160 --> 0:16:30.000 about strategy and things like that, and they're into this. 0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:33.400 They're into this postseason, as you might expect. So I'm 0:16:33.400 --> 0:16:35.360 going to read some of those in a second, Lauren, 0:16:35.360 --> 0:16:37.320 and you can kind of take it in whatever direction 0:16:38.160 --> 0:16:41.080 you would like. But one more thing on PJ. Tucker 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:44.360 is that my favorite play of the game was Surprise Surprise, 0:16:44.600 --> 0:16:48.840 and Beid was double teamed. This was third quarter and 0:16:49.200 --> 0:16:51.840 Tucker set a screen in front of the Nets bench 0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.440 for Maxie in the corner. He missed the three, and 0:16:55.480 --> 0:16:58.480 then PJ. Tucker got the offensive rebound, threw it back 0:16:58.520 --> 0:17:01.360 to Tyrese Maxie and of course he made the second one. 0:17:01.600 --> 0:17:05.600 That was my favorite play of this twelve point victory 0:17:06.040 --> 0:17:10.320 for the Sixers. But I'm looking at some replies, Sophie 0:17:10.320 --> 0:17:13.040 said Bravo to MAXI, of course, but Tobias is my 0:17:13.119 --> 0:17:17.399 game MVP by an easy margin. That combination of aggression 0:17:17.480 --> 0:17:22.000 and cool assuredness is something to see. Great thought there, 0:17:22.640 --> 0:17:26.320 Mara asked you, Lauren, how will the team maintain intensity 0:17:26.400 --> 0:17:28.199 in every game they're locked in? 0:17:28.280 --> 0:17:28.680 Right now? 0:17:30.680 --> 0:17:34.040 Locked in? Indeed? And again, I like what PJ and 0:17:34.119 --> 0:17:36.639 Tyree said about the fact that game two can, of 0:17:36.680 --> 0:17:39.320 course be oftentimes the most pivotal game in a series, 0:17:39.359 --> 0:17:41.440 and of course you can say that about any game. Now, 0:17:41.480 --> 0:17:44.040 going up three to zero becomes the most important game 0:17:44.080 --> 0:17:46.679 in the series, then the opportunity for a sweep becomes 0:17:46.760 --> 0:17:49.320 the most important game in the series. But the threat 0:17:49.560 --> 0:17:52.400 of ending up at a one to one situation where 0:17:52.440 --> 0:17:54.600 the series is even and becomes the best of five, 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.359 it changes everything. Being up two to oh is where 0:17:57.400 --> 0:17:59.560 you want to be at this point. Again, I'm saying, 0:17:59.600 --> 0:18:02.440 obviously things these are cliches, but the messaging that they're 0:18:02.440 --> 0:18:05.399 giving one another about the importance of each game I 0:18:05.440 --> 0:18:07.520 think is really important. And then being able to see 0:18:07.560 --> 0:18:10.840 them go out there and back up that messaging with 0:18:11.000 --> 0:18:14.119 their performance has been just a thrill, honestly, Matt to 0:18:14.119 --> 0:18:15.840 watch in these first couple of games, so how will 0:18:15.880 --> 0:18:17.320 they keep it going? I don't know, but I like 0:18:17.400 --> 0:18:20.320 the leadership that's being shown across the board and the 0:18:20.359 --> 0:18:23.080 way that the guys are answering the call that those 0:18:23.160 --> 0:18:24.080 leaders are giving out. 0:18:24.520 --> 0:18:27.560 Couple more that I'm going to read, and then I 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:30.280 want you to share whatever's on your mind on the 0:18:30.280 --> 0:18:35.639 way out with the last word, Baba two tweets saying 0:18:35.720 --> 0:18:38.280 Tyresee's defense picked up the past couple months. I like 0:18:38.320 --> 0:18:40.480 what I'm seeing from him. I think James needs to 0:18:40.520 --> 0:18:42.960 see some layups go in and some fouls actually called 0:18:42.960 --> 0:18:46.360 and he'll be fine. Baba also said Tobias has been 0:18:46.440 --> 0:18:48.520 very good. I need him to maintain this play for 0:18:48.560 --> 0:18:53.160 the remainder of the playoffs. Jamie asked well Brooklyn changed 0:18:53.200 --> 0:18:56.639 their defense going forward regarding embids, saw that after a while, 0:18:56.720 --> 0:19:00.240 Joel was dealing with the double teams pretty easily. Catch 0:19:00.280 --> 0:19:03.119 twenty two. There was a play towards the very end 0:19:03.200 --> 0:19:07.040 of the game. I'll try to find the clip on Twitter, 0:19:07.200 --> 0:19:09.040 but it may be too late by the time we're 0:19:09.040 --> 0:19:11.640 done live here. Anyway, you could see it in the highlights. 0:19:11.640 --> 0:19:13.920 I'm sure if you watch the full game highlights on 0:19:14.240 --> 0:19:16.800 the at six Ers Twitter. But when the double teams 0:19:16.800 --> 0:19:19.160 did not come. There was one where Joel hit an 0:19:19.200 --> 0:19:22.959 easy He made a very difficult shot look easy on 0:19:23.000 --> 0:19:25.200 like a fade away jumper, and he did that all 0:19:25.240 --> 0:19:27.840 season long in this campaign where he's yet again the 0:19:27.880 --> 0:19:31.199 scoring leader and he just cannot have an inch of 0:19:31.200 --> 0:19:33.920 space or else at his size, He's somehow gonna make 0:19:34.359 --> 0:19:37.439 these fifteen plus foot jumpers, and as soon as the 0:19:37.480 --> 0:19:39.560 Nets played off of them, he made them pay. So 0:19:39.600 --> 0:19:41.639 I think they're in a really difficult spot because they 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:43.800 kind of have to keep the double teams coming. At 0:19:43.880 --> 0:19:45.760 least through two games. They said we're going to go 0:19:45.800 --> 0:19:48.040 back to the double and triple teams and hope that 0:19:48.119 --> 0:19:51.399 the Sixers miss shots, and Tyrese Maxi made more shots 0:19:51.440 --> 0:19:53.680 than he did in Game one and they were able 0:19:53.680 --> 0:19:56.440 to complete the comeback. So it's a really difficult spot 0:19:56.520 --> 0:19:59.000 for the Nets and any team. The Sixers face. 0:20:00.480 --> 0:20:02.760 Was listening to the game one Space and says that 0:20:03.040 --> 0:20:06.080 they love or she rather says that she loves the 0:20:06.119 --> 0:20:09.920 way that playoff p and playoff p PJ and Paul 0:20:10.480 --> 0:20:14.560