WEBVTT - The BroadCast: 12/7/2018 - Serena Winters Recaps Rd. 2 vs Raptors 0:00:00.400 --> 0:00:04.080 Round two between the seventy Sixers and the Raptors offered 0:00:04.120 --> 0:00:07.400 plenty of good storylines. The front and Center was the 0:00:07.400 --> 0:00:09.600 first head to head matchup for a pair of stars 0:00:09.920 --> 0:00:12.799 since both were traded into the Atlantic Division. Butler put 0:00:12.840 --> 0:00:16.560 it in at a remarkable falling down shot. Butler hanging 0:00:16.640 --> 0:00:19.200 in the air, throws it up and got it to go. 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:23.000 Letter gets another freight hand champ Hey fundrous Lamp fight 0:00:23.079 --> 0:00:26.200 Kawhi Leonard. He fight just be the best player in 0:00:26.280 --> 0:00:30.040 the game right now. Wow. No, Jimmy Butler and Kawhi 0:00:30.120 --> 0:00:33.400 Leonard did not disappoint. The Sixers came up short and 0:00:33.440 --> 0:00:37.680 Toronto again. We recapped the matchup and discuss other Sixers 0:00:37.720 --> 0:00:40.960 things with Serena Winners. It was an early barometer. That 0:00:41.000 --> 0:00:43.599 doesn't mean that that barometer is not going to be 0:00:43.640 --> 0:00:47.199 more even come April. It just means that there's a 0:00:47.240 --> 0:00:50.120 little bit of ways to go. NBC Sports Philadelphia Sixers 0:00:50.120 --> 0:00:53.519 reporter Serena Winners our guest on this week's edition of 0:00:53.680 --> 0:01:01.760 the broadcast. What going on out there are seventy Sixers 0:01:01.800 --> 0:01:05.880 pod people. Hope everything is good and well in your 0:01:05.959 --> 0:01:09.520 world relatively speaking, of course, you know that Wednesday night's 0:01:09.520 --> 0:01:12.760 game in Toronto stings one thirteen, one h two loss 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:16.800 to the Raptors. Thirteenth straight time the Sixers have dropped 0:01:16.800 --> 0:01:19.920 a regular season game in the North and they will 0:01:19.959 --> 0:01:21.920 have to wait until next year to try and end 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:26.319 that trend. But of course, who knows, wouldn't be entirely 0:01:26.360 --> 0:01:29.480 out of the question whatsoever if these two division and 0:01:29.520 --> 0:01:33.200 conference rivals would meet up once again in the postseason. 0:01:33.240 --> 0:01:35.920 But two more matchups between the Sixers and the Raptors 0:01:36.080 --> 0:01:38.720 on the calendar, with the next one coming up in 0:01:38.840 --> 0:01:42.080 just a few days right before the Christmas holiday at 0:01:42.120 --> 0:01:45.200 the Center. My name is Brian Seltzer. As always, we 0:01:45.319 --> 0:01:47.760 very much appreciate you're checking out the podcast. You can 0:01:47.800 --> 0:01:55.800 subscribe through iTunes, google Play, Stitcher, pocketcasts, SoundCloud, tune in. 0:01:56.400 --> 0:01:59.400 Any one of your favorite podcasting platforms should have us. 0:01:59.440 --> 0:02:03.080 All you gotta do is type in Sixers podcast Network 0:02:03.200 --> 0:02:06.760 and that should take you to our feeds. So yeah, 0:02:06.840 --> 0:02:09.560 Wednesday night on the road against the Raptors was not 0:02:09.639 --> 0:02:11.679 a game that ended up the way the seventy Sixers 0:02:11.919 --> 0:02:14.600 wanted it to go. Sixers went into the matchup with 0:02:14.720 --> 0:02:17.720 the second highest win total in the NBA, with seventeen. 0:02:18.240 --> 0:02:21.280 Toronto led the league with twenty dubs, and Toronto would 0:02:21.360 --> 0:02:24.320 end up getting number twenty one at the expense of 0:02:24.320 --> 0:02:26.640 the Sixers. I thought things got off to a pretty 0:02:26.680 --> 0:02:28.480 good start in that when the Sixers led and by 0:02:28.560 --> 0:02:31.720 six points after a quarter, and it felt like going 0:02:31.760 --> 0:02:35.480 into the final four to five minutes of the first half, 0:02:35.840 --> 0:02:38.520 the team was in a pretty good spot. But then 0:02:38.760 --> 0:02:42.080 Kawhi Leonard, who had already been scoring at will in 0:02:42.120 --> 0:02:46.320 the game, seemed to flick a switch. His teammates responded. 0:02:46.720 --> 0:02:50.840 The urgency level of the Raptors understandably and perhaps not 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:54.280 so surprisingly intensified as well. You gotta remember they were 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:56.160 coming off just their fifth loss of the season on 0:02:56.320 --> 0:03:00.959 Monday at home against the Denver Nuggets, and Toronto took 0:03:01.000 --> 0:03:03.000 things to another level. Of The Sixers hung around in 0:03:03.040 --> 0:03:06.040 the third quarter, they got that big dunk from Joe 0:03:06.160 --> 0:03:08.200 to open up the fourth quarter to give them a 0:03:08.240 --> 0:03:10.760 brief lead, but after that it was pretty much all 0:03:10.840 --> 0:03:15.120 Toronto and their reserves. For as big as Kawhi Leonard 0:03:15.280 --> 0:03:20.040 was and Serge Ibacca was in Wednesday's game, the bench, 0:03:20.240 --> 0:03:24.639 led by Ionas Valanciunas for the Raptors was really important 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:28.240 to helping Toronto seize control that game on Wednesday night. 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:31.239 So the final score once again was one thirteen, one 0:03:31.280 --> 0:03:33.760 oh two. It was a big game and thought it 0:03:33.800 --> 0:03:38.440 was certainly worthy of a post mortem discussion with seventy 0:03:38.440 --> 0:03:43.280 six ers reporter from NBC Sports Philadelphia, Serena Winners, and 0:03:43.400 --> 0:03:46.720 before the seventy Sixers flew out of Toronto to Detroit 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:49.880 for Friday's game against the Pistons, Serena and I sat 0:03:49.920 --> 0:03:54.800 down to talk after our respective independent launch ventures. If 0:03:54.800 --> 0:03:57.720 I really had my off day act together, I would 0:03:57.760 --> 0:04:00.960 probably take a page out of the Serena Winters playbook. 0:04:01.240 --> 0:04:03.720 I would invigorate myself, go to the gym and do 0:04:03.760 --> 0:04:07.240 something worthwhile with my time. I need to get onto 0:04:07.280 --> 0:04:09.320 that plan. I don't have that part of my life 0:04:09.360 --> 0:04:13.200 down you. I did make it to the gym today. 0:04:13.360 --> 0:04:16.320 I did, and I went for a stroll in Toronto 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:20.400 and even got through to some emails. Didn't have time 0:04:20.400 --> 0:04:24.000 to eat the lunch, got lunch. It's just sitting next 0:04:24.040 --> 0:04:25.359 to me here. So what I could be with you, 0:04:25.440 --> 0:04:28.080 Brian as becose you're being passionate about taping a podcast 0:04:28.120 --> 0:04:32.640 before we hopped on a plane to exactly I ran 0:04:32.680 --> 0:04:35.160 and stuff my face full of a poutine. That's why 0:04:35.200 --> 0:04:37.560 I'm spending my frue time. I feel like I got 0:04:37.680 --> 0:04:39.240 to do it. I know that's like a cliche thing 0:04:39.240 --> 0:04:41.320 they have in Toronto or Canada, I guess from when 0:04:41.320 --> 0:04:44.320 I've read it Julian Montreal thing. But there are places 0:04:44.360 --> 0:04:47.320 psycho too, and I'm like, I just gotta I gotta 0:04:47.360 --> 0:04:51.120 sample more the local fair and when I come to Toronto, 0:04:51.160 --> 0:04:53.200 I just try to try to check a couple different 0:04:53.200 --> 0:04:56.520 poutine places off my list, so you enjoy the poutine. 0:04:57.240 --> 0:04:59.160 There are parts of the poutine I enjoy. I don't 0:04:59.200 --> 0:05:00.919 know if I fully joy like if I saw it 0:05:01.000 --> 0:05:03.840 on the menu at a restaurant in Philadelphia, I don't 0:05:03.839 --> 0:05:05.880 know if i'd get it, but they're parts of it 0:05:06.000 --> 0:05:08.800 that I enjoy, Like I like gravy, I like French fries, 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:11.839 I like cheese. It's just a lot. I have to 0:05:11.839 --> 0:05:15.360 go with a very small portion size very heavy. There's 0:05:15.360 --> 0:05:18.039 a lot happening in the poutine. So I did the 0:05:18.080 --> 0:05:20.479 exact opposite of like going to the gym or something 0:05:20.520 --> 0:05:23.080 like that. That's okay, that's all right. I like to 0:05:23.360 --> 0:05:25.479 go to the gym and then also eat nachos there 0:05:25.480 --> 0:05:27.840 you go, you know, so you just balance each other around. 0:05:28.480 --> 0:05:33.560 Work hard, play hard exactly, or just work hard, eat hard. Yes, 0:05:34.600 --> 0:05:36.200 I had some time over lunch to think about what 0:05:36.240 --> 0:05:40.760 we saw Wednesday night in Toronto, and I kind of listen. 0:05:40.839 --> 0:05:42.240 There was so much build up to the game, and 0:05:42.279 --> 0:05:44.000 there was a lot of excitement and if you file 0:05:44.080 --> 0:05:46.279 the Sixers, if you're a fan of the team, of 0:05:46.279 --> 0:05:48.440 course you're disappointed by the outcome. I think Brett Brown 0:05:48.440 --> 0:05:51.080 and the players were too. But it definitely was a 0:05:51.160 --> 0:05:53.280 different type of game in the first time around. It's 0:05:53.279 --> 0:05:55.960 a different team the first time around. So a day later, 0:05:56.320 --> 0:05:58.159 what are your thoughts on what we saw at Scotia 0:05:58.200 --> 0:06:02.400 Bank Arena. It was a different game the first time around. 0:06:02.640 --> 0:06:06.360 I think that now having slept on it and thinking 0:06:06.400 --> 0:06:09.880 about that game and looking back at that game, one 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:13.840 of the things I will remember is how poorly the 0:06:13.960 --> 0:06:19.440 Raptors shot, especially in that first half, and you've got 0:06:19.440 --> 0:06:24.040 to take advantage of that if you were the Sixers. 0:06:24.600 --> 0:06:27.520 And so I kind of looked back at that and 0:06:27.560 --> 0:06:30.520 I think to myself, man, there were so many opportunities, 0:06:30.520 --> 0:06:33.560 so many chances were the Sixers to beat what is 0:06:33.600 --> 0:06:38.120 now the best team in the NBA. It felt like 0:06:38.160 --> 0:06:40.799 it was there. It felt like the Raptors were off 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:44.279 their game. And when one of the best teams is 0:06:44.320 --> 0:06:46.320 off their game and you haven't won in their building, 0:06:46.360 --> 0:06:49.680 you just want to take advantage of it. So that's 0:06:49.800 --> 0:06:53.599 one of the things. And of course the turnovers, because 0:06:53.800 --> 0:06:56.160 it also happened the last time that we were here. 0:06:56.760 --> 0:07:00.120 I know that Ben had eleven the first time and 0:07:00.240 --> 0:07:03.040 seven the other night, and I think they had at 0:07:03.120 --> 0:07:06.080 least seventeen points. Gave up at least seventeen points off 0:07:06.120 --> 0:07:11.320 their turnovers against the Raptors. But what I will say 0:07:12.440 --> 0:07:16.360 is that they definitely had a chance to beat the 0:07:16.400 --> 0:07:20.120 best team in the NBA. I saw some good things defensively, 0:07:21.680 --> 0:07:23.840 and they had their moments, they had their spurts. I 0:07:23.880 --> 0:07:27.200 just wish that in that second half they would have money. 0:07:27.240 --> 0:07:29.000 Williams used a term with me at the half. He 0:07:29.120 --> 0:07:32.000 just said, we gotta bring the juice. We got to 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:33.560 bring the juice, and we come out and if we 0:07:33.640 --> 0:07:37.120 bring the juice, we'll win this game. But there were 0:07:37.160 --> 0:07:40.320 some parts in the third and fourth They're a little juiceless, Brian, 0:07:40.880 --> 0:07:45.920 a little juiceless. I agree. When I saw Kyle Lowry 0:07:46.080 --> 0:07:49.080 missing some open looks, Danny Greene missing some open looks 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:51.880 in the first half. You're like, some open looks. Kyle 0:07:51.960 --> 0:07:54.720 Lowry couldn't hit a shot, he was over five. You're 0:07:54.720 --> 0:07:56.880 being too kind, Brian. You gotta take advantage of that. 0:07:57.400 --> 0:08:00.720 I am, And you're absolutely right. I'm because you're watching 0:08:00.760 --> 0:08:02.920 that unfold. And I thought there were times when the 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:06.320 Sixers made the Raptors work for it, especially in the 0:08:06.360 --> 0:08:09.800 first half. I thought their transition defense was pretty good, 0:08:09.840 --> 0:08:12.240 disrupted some things with Toronto on the break. It was okay, 0:08:12.280 --> 0:08:13.840 it was a step in the right direction. They did 0:08:13.960 --> 0:08:15.880 score a lot of points of transition. I thought the 0:08:15.920 --> 0:08:18.240 second half that changed in a big way when Kauhi 0:08:18.360 --> 0:08:21.960 really started to take it to another level. He's good, 0:08:22.040 --> 0:08:24.520 isn't He should really sit back and you go, man, 0:08:24.680 --> 0:08:27.840 is he good? And they say he's not even percent yet. 0:08:28.440 --> 0:08:31.120 I know. So that was one thing we're watching last night. 0:08:31.120 --> 0:08:33.360 You were like, even compared to that October thirtieth game, 0:08:33.480 --> 0:08:37.640 like Kawai seemed to have found a different gear. So 0:08:37.679 --> 0:08:39.880 you're watching the Sixers are up by nine and then 0:08:40.000 --> 0:08:42.000 Jimmy hits that three pointer to give him a six 0:08:42.040 --> 0:08:43.880 point lead late in the first half, and you're thinking, 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:47.040 all right, scoreboard wise, this is looking good. But as 0:08:47.080 --> 0:08:50.679 you said, there were things in the underbelly of what 0:08:50.720 --> 0:08:54.320 was going on that made you feel unsettled. But I 0:08:54.440 --> 0:08:58.199 thought the deficit felt larger at the end of the 0:08:58.240 --> 0:09:00.800 half than it was based on that teen nothing run 0:09:01.040 --> 0:09:04.080 where Kauhi really flicked the switch. I thought it was 0:09:04.160 --> 0:09:06.120 good to see them come back and take the one 0:09:06.160 --> 0:09:08.920 point lead after the Muscal threes late in the third. 0:09:09.280 --> 0:09:11.520 I kind of thought that the game was hanging the bounce. 0:09:11.679 --> 0:09:13.959 There was a big scoring drought there, right happy six 0:09:14.040 --> 0:09:16.520 Ers not scored in like three minutes something like that, 0:09:16.720 --> 0:09:19.080 and then they kind of with Jimmy feeling it like 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:22.400 he sparked them and got them back into it. Joe 0:09:22.440 --> 0:09:25.760 had that jam to begin the fourth, and you're like, Okay, 0:09:26.080 --> 0:09:28.880 there may be daylight here, there might be something, but 0:09:28.920 --> 0:09:31.120 there's just such a slim margin fair against. Like you 0:09:31.160 --> 0:09:33.120 were saying a team that that's good, that that's deep. 0:09:33.160 --> 0:09:34.760 I mean, that's the other thing. They are a deep, 0:09:35.080 --> 0:09:38.040 deep team. When you watch that game, didn't you go, wow, 0:09:38.160 --> 0:09:41.800 this bench is good, like you you forget you forget 0:09:41.840 --> 0:09:45.600 that because they have so many good starters. You forget 0:09:45.600 --> 0:09:49.720 how deep the benches and Fred van Leet. He didn't 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:53.000 play first game correct, Yes, the first game because he 0:09:53.040 --> 0:09:57.400 had that toe injury. Correct, So that was something to 0:09:57.600 --> 0:09:59.920 where we didn't get to see him the first time around. 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:01.640 Seeing him this time. He's a big part of what 0:10:01.679 --> 0:10:04.480 they do too. He's great. Og n Anobi is great. 0:10:04.640 --> 0:10:06.920 I know he's a starter, but I think Pascal Siak, 0:10:07.000 --> 0:10:09.040 I'm like, he may not do a bunch of stuff 0:10:09.040 --> 0:10:11.160 stat wise. The first game he had a great stack game, 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:13.000 but just what he does for their rebounding and that 0:10:13.120 --> 0:10:16.680 was a huge story in the game on Wednesday, but 0:10:17.040 --> 0:10:19.400 especially the offensive rebounding. I know that's always been a 0:10:19.400 --> 0:10:23.439 focus for the Sixers is to limit the offensive rebounding 0:10:24.120 --> 0:10:26.959 of the opposing team. And we saw a lot of 0:10:26.960 --> 0:10:29.719 offensive rebounds for Toronto the first app What I will 0:10:29.760 --> 0:10:33.360 say though, Brian, I was surprised that Toronto didn't get 0:10:33.360 --> 0:10:37.280 more points off their offensive rebounds. So the Sixers kind 0:10:37.280 --> 0:10:40.600 of got lucky there, didn't take advantage of that. And 0:10:40.679 --> 0:10:42.560 it sounds like such a simple thing, And for me, 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:44.880 I know this is something that I probably overlooked. Just 0:10:44.960 --> 0:10:47.960 about every game day we have when I just like 0:10:48.040 --> 0:10:51.959 take account of the final boxsheet is who's had more shots? 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:53.960 And you know, if a team has three or four 0:10:54.000 --> 0:10:56.679 more shots, five or six more shots, who knows. But 0:10:56.720 --> 0:10:58.240 when there's like you start to get into the double 0:10:58.280 --> 0:11:02.320 digit disparity, just like you know, um, I think Toronto, 0:11:02.360 --> 0:11:05.920 I'm looking right now, Toronto made three more shots, took 0:11:05.960 --> 0:11:10.440 twelve more and you know, you're what's that? That's like 0:11:10.440 --> 0:11:13.640 twenty five percent? But they still made three more shots. 0:11:13.880 --> 0:11:15.520 And in a game like that, it's an eleven point 0:11:15.559 --> 0:11:18.000 deficit at the end, you know that that can make 0:11:18.040 --> 0:11:20.480 a difference. And the reason why you've got a team 0:11:20.600 --> 0:11:25.560 that's taken more shots is because of turnovers and offensive rebounds, right, 0:11:25.840 --> 0:11:28.120 I mean, at the end of the day, the offensive 0:11:28.120 --> 0:11:30.640 rebounds are leading to an extra shot every time, and 0:11:30.800 --> 0:11:33.880 the turnovers are too, So if you could have cut 0:11:33.920 --> 0:11:37.640 back on those, we wouldn't have seen the shot discrepancy. 0:11:38.280 --> 0:11:41.120 The other thing that talking about the bench that I 0:11:41.160 --> 0:11:45.760 thought stood out in both games. Jonas Valancunis, Yes, I 0:11:45.760 --> 0:11:47.960 mean that to be able to bring in a guy 0:11:48.000 --> 0:11:51.400 who's as accomplished as he is off the bench, I 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:53.280 mean there's not a lot of guys and not a 0:11:53.280 --> 0:11:55.040 lot of teams. I should say that can you know, 0:11:55.200 --> 0:11:59.240 obviously throwing surge out there that that's a smaller look for, 0:11:59.400 --> 0:12:02.120 but obviously it's very very good. And then if you 0:12:02.120 --> 0:12:04.160 can bring joan Us off the bench, I mean, that's 0:12:04.760 --> 0:12:09.839 that's a tough load to corral. He looked good. And 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:13.720 Joel Embiide, who we haven't talked about yet, he had 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:16.520 a tough night. He had a tough night against him. 0:12:17.080 --> 0:12:22.640 He Joannis was able to push Joel a couple feet 0:12:22.679 --> 0:12:26.360 farther then. I'm sure the Sixers would have liked him 0:12:26.440 --> 0:12:30.440 to be offensively and I think that really affected the 0:12:30.480 --> 0:12:33.320 team's offense. But yeah, he had a strong night. Man, 0:12:33.360 --> 0:12:35.719 he had a strong night, and he seemed locked in 0:12:36.400 --> 0:12:41.000 from the get go against arguably the best, if not 0:12:41.160 --> 0:12:43.240 one of the best centers in the NBA. I was 0:12:43.280 --> 0:12:46.600 really impressed with Toronto's defense, especially on Joe, like the 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:50.040 aggressive help they brought into the paint. They put a 0:12:50.080 --> 0:12:53.240 fancy offensive numbers, but they they're such a well rounded 0:12:53.240 --> 0:12:55.800 team and it was just for me though. It was 0:12:55.840 --> 0:12:58.360 great theater, Like you know, we can I'm not saying 0:12:58.360 --> 0:13:00.800 these are these are not obvious now, but you've got 0:13:00.840 --> 0:13:04.480 the Kawai Jimmy angle. You've got the top two teams 0:13:04.480 --> 0:13:06.760 in terms of win totals in the league, going at 0:13:06.800 --> 0:13:11.040 conference rivals, division rivals. It was just it was great 0:13:11.120 --> 0:13:14.360 theater and I thought it was a healthy perspective that 0:13:14.360 --> 0:13:17.680 everyone seemed to take, led by Brett after the game. 0:13:18.080 --> 0:13:20.000 On top of that, just because you mentioned all the 0:13:20.160 --> 0:13:22.880 you know, the narratives, the healthy theater, I mean, not 0:13:23.040 --> 0:13:26.280 only we've talked about how the Sixers have not won 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:29.880 in Toronto since Brett Brown has been head coach, but 0:13:29.960 --> 0:13:33.160 did you know that the Sixers have not beaten Kawhi Leonard. 0:13:34.559 --> 0:13:37.760 That's a good one. They have not beaten Kawhi Leonard. 0:13:37.960 --> 0:13:42.840 They are now Kawai is now twelve and zero against 0:13:42.840 --> 0:13:46.079 the Sixers, Brian twelve and oh because now that I'm 0:13:46.120 --> 0:13:48.280 thinking of it, he didn't play the two games the 0:13:48.280 --> 0:13:52.440 Sixers beat the Sprayers last year. Yes, So there was 0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:55.280 just so many different There were so many layers to 0:13:55.320 --> 0:13:59.000 that game. Yeah, there really were, And I mean there 0:13:59.080 --> 0:14:03.040 was definitely positive to take away. There was definitely growth, 0:14:04.040 --> 0:14:10.360 Jimmy having his most aggressive night offensively, little things like 0:14:10.800 --> 0:14:13.760 I remember even with a minute left in that game, 0:14:14.520 --> 0:14:18.640 when it seemed very much like the Sixers were done 0:14:19.360 --> 0:14:24.960 in the timeout, Jimmy being very assertive, telling you know, 0:14:24.960 --> 0:14:28.520 whether it's been or somebody else, we gotta do this defensively. 0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:31.760 We still got this, you know, very much in it 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:34.840 with a minute remaining in it pretty clear at the 0:14:34.840 --> 0:14:37.600 sixers we're going to lose that one. Those types of 0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:41.680 things are important to me because trying to push that 0:14:41.720 --> 0:14:43.280 fight all the way through to the end, I think 0:14:43.360 --> 0:14:45.640 that's a big positive, not trying to give it up 0:14:45.640 --> 0:14:48.800 as we're all learning moments, so there's definitely possible to 0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:53.160 take away. But then some of the same storylines from 0:14:53.160 --> 0:14:55.400 the first game, like the turnovers, cleaning that type of 0:14:55.440 --> 0:14:57.560 stuff up. There was a lot of there was a 0:14:57.600 --> 0:14:59.560 lot of the B word being thrown around before the 0:14:59.560 --> 0:15:03.280 game on Wednesday, the barometer word out of the yeah, 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:08.880 the good old yeah. Um. But I don't think, you know, 0:15:09.600 --> 0:15:11.920 there's like is this a barometer? And then there's also 0:15:11.960 --> 0:15:14.720 the it's December fifth, And I don't think that those 0:15:14.760 --> 0:15:17.160 things need to be mutual exclusive, like it is a 0:15:17.200 --> 0:15:21.640 barometer for December fifth, and it's the outcome was a 0:15:21.640 --> 0:15:24.400 better barometer than what you got on October thirtieth, And 0:15:24.440 --> 0:15:26.560 now you're gonna have two more opportunities against a really 0:15:26.560 --> 0:15:29.160 good team in your building before the season has done. 0:15:29.200 --> 0:15:31.800 The next one coming up the Saturday before Christmas at 0:15:31.800 --> 0:15:35.440 the Center. Um So, I don't think that those things 0:15:35.440 --> 0:15:37.080 the idea of it being a barometer, but then it 0:15:37.160 --> 0:15:39.240 also still being earlier in the season, they need to 0:15:39.240 --> 0:15:42.200 be mutual exclusive because I do think, um, as we 0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:45.400 look at what Jimmy Butler did, if other guys are 0:15:45.440 --> 0:15:48.240 on you know, if Joel is feeling comfortable in doing 0:15:48.280 --> 0:15:50.760 this thing, and obviously Ben, maybe you get a little 0:15:50.800 --> 0:15:53.160 bit more from there. I think those two guys will 0:15:53.160 --> 0:15:55.240 be the first to tell you they weren't on top 0:15:55.280 --> 0:15:57.640 of their game Wednesday night. Then you're looking at a 0:15:57.640 --> 0:16:00.280 different deal. And I mean, I just you can't the 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:03.200 weapon that Jimmy poses. I mean, it was fun to watch. 0:16:04.480 --> 0:16:07.920 You mentioned the early barometer, and I think you make 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:10.560 a good point there because we have used that term 0:16:10.600 --> 0:16:14.800 a lot. But barometer doesn't mean that this is where 0:16:14.800 --> 0:16:18.840 we're going to see them in the postseason. Barometer means, okay, 0:16:19.600 --> 0:16:21.080 what if it that we still have to work on. 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:25.120 What are our deficiencies? Still? Clearly, are we looking a 0:16:25.120 --> 0:16:28.200 little bit better than we looked a month ago? And 0:16:28.240 --> 0:16:30.800 I think we had a little bit of answers there. 0:16:31.280 --> 0:16:35.520 Maybe maybe for fans it's not the answers that they want, 0:16:35.960 --> 0:16:38.400 but that's just because they're passionate fans and want to 0:16:38.400 --> 0:16:42.800 see them be Toronto. But it was an early barometer. 0:16:43.680 --> 0:16:45.400 You saw where the Sixers are, You saw him where 0:16:45.400 --> 0:16:48.240 they're headed, and there's still time. Brett will always tell 0:16:48.280 --> 0:16:50.640 you that he doesn't even want to look at where 0:16:50.680 --> 0:16:53.120 they're at until after Christmas. That he divides the season 0:16:53.200 --> 0:16:56.560 up into thirds, right, So that doesn't mean that that 0:16:56.680 --> 0:17:00.360 barometer is not going to be more even come April. 0:17:01.120 --> 0:17:02.800 It just means that there's a little bit of ways 0:17:02.840 --> 0:17:06.400 to go, patients. It's not easy, but the good news 0:17:06.480 --> 0:17:08.919 is in the good old NBA. Another game run on 0:17:08.920 --> 0:17:11.359 the doorstep, and the Sixers have one another big one 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:15.920 against the Detroit Pistons on Friday. But incredibly, we're almost 0:17:15.960 --> 0:17:18.880 at the thirty game mark of this season. How did 0:17:18.880 --> 0:17:21.639 it go so fast? I don't know. I don't know, 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:25.399 And all things considered, is there a staying from a 0:17:25.440 --> 0:17:28.080 loss like Wednesday? Shut But the Sixers they're in a 0:17:28.080 --> 0:17:30.160 great spot. All think that's easy to say. I mean, 0:17:30.359 --> 0:17:33.679 I know I'm on the team, digital the team you 0:17:33.720 --> 0:17:35.880 step back, and I think a lot of teams would 0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:38.440 envy the position that the Sixers are in right now. 0:17:38.960 --> 0:17:41.640 You know, they do have more work to be done, 0:17:41.760 --> 0:17:44.760 some things to iron out, but it would have been 0:17:44.760 --> 0:17:47.359 your biggest takeaways from your first what are we have 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:51.119 two months full months almost when we account for the 0:17:51.119 --> 0:17:56.000 regular season the end of this year. Biggest takeaways. I 0:17:56.119 --> 0:18:03.040 love that there's such a family vibe around the team 0:18:03.480 --> 0:18:07.520 that starts with Brett. I know that he helps to 0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:13.800 create that, but that guys genuinely care, They care about 0:18:13.800 --> 0:18:19.640 each other, and you know, me being new around here, 0:18:20.200 --> 0:18:23.040 new with the team, that is something that has been 0:18:23.480 --> 0:18:26.440 very very easy to pick up on. That it's more 0:18:26.480 --> 0:18:30.400 than just basketball at the Sixers organization, and I think 0:18:30.400 --> 0:18:33.920 that's important. I think that's how you build the culture 0:18:34.040 --> 0:18:42.480 that they are finally at basketball. Takeaways that Joel Embiide 0:18:44.880 --> 0:18:48.400 is so good, but they also rely so much on 0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:52.320 him and need him to step up in those big moments, 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:56.119 and we've seen what happened, for example against Toronto when 0:18:56.760 --> 0:19:00.400 he doesn't have his best game, right I mean they 0:19:00.400 --> 0:19:05.000 were in that game with Joel not having a good game, 0:19:05.560 --> 0:19:09.240 with probably having one of his maybe one of his 0:19:09.280 --> 0:19:13.040 worst performances of the year and Sixers exactly. The Sixers 0:19:13.040 --> 0:19:16.840 were still very much in that game. Imagine if he had, 0:19:17.119 --> 0:19:20.600 you know, one of his dominant performances, or not even dominant, 0:19:20.600 --> 0:19:25.000 but one of just a more productive night where they 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:31.680 could have been in that game. Watching Ben, he has 0:19:31.760 --> 0:19:38.160 so much defensive potential. It's just about doing it from 0:19:38.160 --> 0:19:41.040 start to finish. And that's hard for someone to say 0:19:41.320 --> 0:19:44.439 because you're not in their shoes and a starter. But 0:19:44.520 --> 0:19:47.840 we've seen games like for example, against Memphis where Ben's 0:19:47.880 --> 0:19:53.840 just locked in defensively and what that does for the team, 0:19:53.880 --> 0:19:58.119 and also that Jimmy's bringing something here. I think that 0:19:59.480 --> 0:20:04.320 there's some tangible that he can really bring to this team, 0:20:04.800 --> 0:20:08.440 whether that's leadership, whether that's accountability, whether that's speaking up. 0:20:09.320 --> 0:20:12.600 He's bringing something, and I'm excited to see what happens 0:20:12.760 --> 0:20:14.760 when he feels like he fits in and when he 0:20:14.800 --> 0:20:17.800 does feel a little bit more comfortable and he can 0:20:17.840 --> 0:20:22.159 continue to provide that leadership. I think he's bringing some 0:20:22.560 --> 0:20:26.920 swag and moxie. He's got like a different I think 0:20:27.040 --> 0:20:30.720 Joel and Ben are certainly well on their way to stardom, 0:20:30.840 --> 0:20:33.520 if not an even higher level of just playing old stardom. 0:20:33.800 --> 0:20:35.879 But Jimmy's got this thing where he's a little bit older, 0:20:35.960 --> 0:20:38.359 He's been through a couple more things, He's achieved a 0:20:38.359 --> 0:20:42.439 little bit more individually, and he has got this I 0:20:42.520 --> 0:20:47.600 feel like, easygoing inner confidence, like kind of I don't 0:20:47.600 --> 0:20:48.720 know if you feel this way, but I feel like 0:20:48.760 --> 0:20:50.879 he's got like a a man, someone at peace with 0:20:50.920 --> 0:20:54.000 the way things are right now. Obviously motivated and driven, 0:20:55.520 --> 0:20:57.000 but he's got some swag. I don't know if that 0:20:57.040 --> 0:21:01.040 comes from his humor. He works so hard, but he's 0:21:01.080 --> 0:21:04.800 also got this, you know, just natural. I think unforced 0:21:04.840 --> 0:21:06.960 sense of humor about him. I think he knows too, 0:21:06.960 --> 0:21:10.040 And I think that in any profession, in any walk 0:21:10.040 --> 0:21:13.560 of life, I think that sometimes change is good. And 0:21:14.520 --> 0:21:17.360 Joel and Ben have been here for a while, are 0:21:17.440 --> 0:21:20.920 the leaders of this team, and sometimes it's good to 0:21:21.240 --> 0:21:22.679 shake things up a bit with a little bit of 0:21:22.760 --> 0:21:25.160 change and see how that helps motivate and help grow 0:21:25.240 --> 0:21:28.439 these guys. Like you said, Jimmy is a bit older, 0:21:28.680 --> 0:21:31.080 a bit wiser in the basketball world, has some advice 0:21:31.119 --> 0:21:33.840 to give, some tips to give, and some wisdom to 0:21:33.880 --> 0:21:36.440 pass on. And he's fun to talk to. I don't 0:21:36.440 --> 0:21:37.920 know if you ever just like caught up with him 0:21:38.560 --> 0:21:41.680 outside of the locker room or the scrums or I mean, 0:21:41.720 --> 0:21:44.880 he's he's just human like, he's just an easy guy 0:21:44.920 --> 0:21:47.240 to chat with, and that type of stuff goes a 0:21:47.240 --> 0:21:50.240 long way, especially when you're the new guy coming into 0:21:50.240 --> 0:21:55.160 an organization. You know, having teammates and people around feel 0:21:55.160 --> 0:21:58.240 comfortable just chatting with you about anything, or your two 0:21:58.280 --> 0:22:02.160 parts series on NBC Philly NBC Sports Philly dot com. 0:22:02.200 --> 0:22:05.880