Speaker 1: This podcast is part of the seventy six Ers podcast
Speaker 1: network search seventy Sixers Insiders wherever you get your podcasts. Yeahday, everybody,
Speaker 1: Yeah seventy six All right, all right, let's get started
Speaker 1: right now. Matt Murphy, Lauren Rosen, Devon Givens back for
Speaker 1: another Sixers Twitter spaces, coming off a one twenty two
Speaker 1: ninety seven win for the Sixers against the Clippers on
Speaker 1: the road. The Sixers are now forty six and twenty seven.
Speaker 1: We do these live on Twitter and then as podcasts.
Speaker 1: They're posted after every Sixers win. It's good to be back.
Speaker 1: We'll bring Devon in, but Lauren, I gotta start with this.
Speaker 1: What's up, miss Rosen? How was Game two in Los Angeles?
Speaker 1: Thank you Matt for bringing us in that way. It
Speaker 1: was really nice. The Sixers were sort of due. It
Speaker 1: felt for a route for a big victory, one twenty
Speaker 1: two to ninety seven. They came out hot and then
Speaker 1: they stayed hot. They maintained a lead. Doc Rivers got
Speaker 1: to go to his bench a little bit heavier there
Speaker 1: at the end, and that's what the Sixers wanted to
Speaker 1: get done now, of course, facing a big challenge tomorrow
Speaker 1: in Phoenix, but doing so on a role after one
Speaker 1: of their best wins yet this season in my opinion,
Speaker 1: or at least one of their most decisive wins, and
Speaker 1: then maybe one of the best wins in the James
Speaker 1: Harden era. So the vibes were high. In the words
Speaker 1: of Tobia's Hairs, the sun was bright, the vibrations were right,
Speaker 1: and the Sixers got it done. Yeah, and before we
Speaker 1: get into the box score, well, first of all, for
Speaker 1: anyone who doesn't know, I was channeling my inner Tyrese
Speaker 1: Maxie there because he has been calling Lauren miss Rosen
Speaker 1: miss Rosen a lot lately, particularly on in recent games,
Speaker 1: after recent games, whatever the case might be. But before
Speaker 1: we run through some of the numbers, let's welcome in
Speaker 1: Davon Gibbons of ninety seven five, the Fanatic, a Sixers insider,
Speaker 1: the host of the Sixers pre and post coverage on
Speaker 1: the radio with Tom McGinnis devon Welcome back. The Sixers
Speaker 1: get fifty six points combined between Joel em Beat and
Speaker 1: James Harden, twenty five rebounds between the pair, and they
Speaker 1: really never made this one worrisome for anyone. They defeat
Speaker 1: the Clippers in convincing fashion. They take both LA games.
Speaker 1: What stood out to you before we break down some
Speaker 1: of the specific stats. Well, thanks for having me, as always, guys,
Speaker 1: it's really good to be back in. Yeah, it was
Speaker 1: great to see those two really get it going and
Speaker 1: very early while the Clippers got off to a five
Speaker 1: nothing lead, after that, the Sixers just went on their sprint.
Speaker 1: The next thing you know, they're up twenty one seven
Speaker 1: and right from there, you just knew that they had
Speaker 1: a good feel for the game and a good control
Speaker 1: of the game, and you just wanted to see if
Speaker 1: it was something that was going to continue you and
Speaker 1: continue it did You always expect a run from the opposition,
Speaker 1: but even with the run that the Clippers did had,
Speaker 1: there was never really any threat that they were going
Speaker 1: to take the game from them. They were ready to go.
Speaker 1: They completed it from start to finish and it was
Speaker 1: a great win. Sweep, nice sweep in LA. I'll take
Speaker 1: it nice LA sweep and Lauren take it away with
Speaker 1: some of the stats from this one. Of course, Phoenix
Speaker 1: is up next on this road trip. But they took
Speaker 1: care of the Lakers, and they took care of the
Speaker 1: Clippers and beat and Harden led the way with double doubles.
Speaker 1: But what else did we have on the stat sheet?
Speaker 1: As I jump in, take a close listen, and whatever
Speaker 1: stands out to you, send us a message. What are
Speaker 1: you excited about? What do you want to talk more
Speaker 1: about as we go through this box score? So get
Speaker 1: your Twitter fingers ready because we're going to answer any
Speaker 1: questions that you guys have. James Harden led the way.
Speaker 1: He was big early, he was big often. Twenty nine
Speaker 1: point fifteen rebound double double was fifteen rebound mark his
Speaker 1: season high, plus seven assists, two steals and a block.
Speaker 1: Joel Embiade a twenty seven point ten rebound double double
Speaker 1: plus two assists, a steal and two blocks. Matisse Thyble
Speaker 1: thirteen points, three steals, Matisse five for six from the field.
Speaker 1: He made his only three pointer. He made both of
Speaker 1: his foul shots to buy Hiss hair as twelve points,
Speaker 1: two rebounds, two assists. Tyrese Maxie started off a little
Speaker 1: bit slower, found some big buckets at the end though,
Speaker 1: eleven points, five rebounds and assists, two steals and two blocks.
Speaker 1: So a solid defensive game from young tyres Maxie, Danny
Speaker 1: Green and Paul Read each poor and eight points off
Speaker 1: the bench marking a bench high shake Milton seven points
Speaker 1: five assists, which was a bench high. So overall, lots
Speaker 1: of contributions. And of course when you have two guys
Speaker 1: putting up twenty nine and fifteen and twenty seven and
Speaker 1: ten in James Harden and Joel Embid, you don't need
Speaker 1: a ton from the rest of the group. But the
Speaker 1: six has got quite a bit from the rest of
Speaker 1: the group. So just a balanced victory. We were a
Speaker 1: doubt in this one. Really good to see the guys
Speaker 1: continue to build up chemistry as the regular season winds
Speaker 1: to a close. Just a solid wind guys overall, what
Speaker 1: stood out to you? Send us questions, send us comments
Speaker 1: like Gina sent us a video which we could start
Speaker 1: off with. Gina says, no questions, no thoughts, just James
Speaker 1: Harden pouring water on Joel Embad and singing and dancing too.
Speaker 1: I want to dance with somebody, Lauren, did you get
Speaker 1: a look at that? Have you seen? Did you see
Speaker 1: it up close? What did you see In the end.
Speaker 1: I was sitting sort of perpendicular to the bench, so
Speaker 1: I actually had a really good view of some of
Speaker 1: those moments they played. I want to dance with somebody
Speaker 1: for a long time in the arena, and I think
Speaker 1: the Sixers were just feeling the good vibes. That moment happened,
Speaker 1: and then DeAndre Jordan is sort of holding his arms
Speaker 1: out and spinning around it. It was a little bit surreal.
Speaker 1: It wasn't really what you normally see a bunch of
Speaker 1: NBA players doing, but again, the vibes were high and
Speaker 1: for good reason. So yeah, really funny went from those
Speaker 1: two James Harden and Joel and be developing a really
Speaker 1: funny chemistry on and off the court. The two of
Speaker 1: them are really different as individuals, but they seem to
Speaker 1: really be enjoying each other. And we can hope maybe
Speaker 1: that James will continue to bring a little bit more
Speaker 1: silliness out of Joel because they're they're lifting each other
Speaker 1: on and off the floor. Really really fun stuff. Great
Speaker 1: start to the game devon from James Harden, great starts
Speaker 1: of the game from the team. On defense, I'll bring
Speaker 1: in a Doc Rivers quote when asked about what stood
Speaker 1: out quote our defense. We didn't shoot the ball. We
Speaker 1: were what thirty eight percent at halftime up twenty. That
Speaker 1: tells you the defense is good. Joel and James had
Speaker 1: it going. Actually, I thought Joel missed a lot of
Speaker 1: shots he makes on most nights, yet he still had
Speaker 1: a dominant game. That's just who Joel is. But James
Speaker 1: was comfortable tonight offensively. But I just thought our defense
Speaker 1: stood out in the first half. So for Doc Rivers,
Speaker 1: it was the defense. For me, I thought this game
Speaker 1: is a lot closer if the Sixers aren't knocking down
Speaker 1: threes at such an efficient rate. And even Harden and
Speaker 1: Embiid in particular, Harden had the three point shot going
Speaker 1: early and often. I liked that he took so many
Speaker 1: in the first half and made a bunch obviously, and
Speaker 1: Joel making a three from the Crypto Arena logo was
Speaker 1: one of my favorite moments of the game. So, yes,
Speaker 1: the defense kind of set the tone. But what did
Speaker 1: you think about the three point shooting? Because for me,
Speaker 1: the efficiency to make the fifteen threes helped them kind
Speaker 1: of keep the Clippers at bay throughout the entire game.
Speaker 1: Plus seven right in the three point category, where yeah,
Speaker 1: you're right, they made the fifteen and the Clippers only eight.
Speaker 1: So to have that going in to see it dropping early,
Speaker 1: and when you bring up to James Harden. Part is
Speaker 1: the thing that we've talked about just a little bit
Speaker 1: already with his time here is some of the shots
Speaker 1: seem short, and now he seems to have that, or
Speaker 1: at least the last night he seemed to have that
Speaker 1: lift again in his legs, and of course with the
Speaker 1: shot having a good arc instead of it being more
Speaker 1: of a bee line towards the basket. So once he
Speaker 1: had the one falling and the other one for me
Speaker 1: was a catching shoot opportunity. He'd been saying this, the
Speaker 1: ball's going to come swing to him and a catch
Speaker 1: and shoot where he doesn't have to put the ball
Speaker 1: on the floor. He just has to simply fire it
Speaker 1: up like everyone else does when the ball swings around
Speaker 1: his way for an open opportunity, and he dropped it.
Speaker 1: And when he did drop it once again, you just
Speaker 1: see it play out that way. And now he has
Speaker 1: a step back on. He feels good about how he feels,
Speaker 1: how the ball feels in his hand and knowing that
Speaker 1: the defense is at his mercy with what he is doing,
Speaker 1: and he just played a tremendous overall basketball game. And
Speaker 1: just going back to the defense that Doctor Rivers spoke about,
Speaker 1: it was the nine oh run after the five start.
Speaker 1: That really got it going when James Harden got the
Speaker 1: steer leading to the Matis Styble allue, the Matis Styble
Speaker 1: once again getting his pause in the passing lane and
Speaker 1: going for that break which forced the time out by
Speaker 1: Tyron Low, and after that it just seemed like it
Speaker 1: was contagious. They just they look like they had a
Speaker 1: different energy, a different bounce to them overall, once they
Speaker 1: got things going after the five oh deficit. Winona is
Speaker 1: excited about Matisse's performance. So not a question about Matisse,
Speaker 1: but Winona says he's got his dunk on fire emojis
Speaker 1: Matisse Thible, it's a trend when he scores in double figures, Lauren,
Speaker 1: that the team plays well. I thought his impact, obviously
Speaker 1: on the defensive end is so often the case. Three
Speaker 1: steals and all five starters when he ran through the
Speaker 1: box score in double figures they actually took or no,
Speaker 1: they didn't take a steal away, so all of them
Speaker 1: had at least one steel. Thible with three, Maxie and
Speaker 1: Harden with two each, and then Harris and Embiid with one.
Speaker 1: But Thible an efficient night shooting. Let's let's talk about
Speaker 1: him yeah, Doc Rivers immediately post his first takeaway from
Speaker 1: last night's game was how well the defense looked in
Speaker 1: comparison to the last few nights, and he went on
Speaker 1: to say that that obviously starts with Matisse Thible on
Speaker 1: the perimeter and Joella beat in the post, but the
Speaker 1: two of them setting the tone for the team. You
Speaker 1: mentioned it. Everybody in the starting lineup had at least
Speaker 1: one steal Tyrese and James each had two. Matisse had
Speaker 1: a team high three, actually tied with Paul Reid, who
Speaker 1: also had a team high three steals. Last night. We
Speaker 1: got to shout out to the bloe Coats playoff bound.
Speaker 1: I was in Delaware. I was in Delaware pregame, so
Speaker 1: it was perfect timing the blue Coats clincher playoff spot.
Speaker 1: And then the Sixers game hadn't even started yet. But yeah, beeball,
Speaker 1: Paul gets in at the end and he contributed to
Speaker 1: that twelve steel total for the Sixers, but so did
Speaker 1: Matisse Thible. A beautiful day of basketball for Matt Murphy.
Speaker 1: But yes, great defensive energy from across the roster and
Speaker 1: starting with Matisse Thible, and then of course Matisse has
Speaker 1: as Onnona said as a really good offensive game Sixers
Speaker 1: now ten and one. When he scores at least ten
Speaker 1: points in a game, and usually I think that's going
Speaker 1: to become a pretty good indicator if everybody's getting involved,
Speaker 1: If Matise is getting involved in an opposing defense has
Speaker 1: to account for Matise Thible, You know things are going
Speaker 1: pretty well offensively, your team is pretty dangerous because the
Speaker 1: other four in that starting lineup can get their buckets
Speaker 1: on their own, and they can get quite a few,
Speaker 1: as we've seen from James Hard and Tyrese, Maxie Dowell,
Speaker 1: Meat Tobias Harris. But when Matise Thible is five or
Speaker 1: six from the field, when he's cutting the way that
Speaker 1: he does, when he's getting those pick six opportunities the
Speaker 1: way that he did last night, this is going to
Speaker 1: be a dangerous team. I really enjoyed the confidence with
Speaker 1: which he played offensively last night, and I think Sixers
Speaker 1: fans in the building did as well. That was a
Speaker 1: really cool thing that I will add about being there
Speaker 1: in person. It really felt kind of like a home
Speaker 1: game for these Sixers. Lots of MVP chants early for
Speaker 1: joelmb The people love Tyrese Maxie on the West coast,
Speaker 1: so really cool to see that energy once again. If
Speaker 1: I don't know if anyone listening was there, but you
Speaker 1: guys did an amazing, amazing job Sixers fans out on
Speaker 1: the West Coast for both games. Sorry, but back to
Speaker 1: Miti stybel devon your thoughts now, it did sound like
Speaker 1: you can hear it. Of course, me doing the broadcast
Speaker 1: back at the studio, you could hear it, and I'm wondering,
Speaker 1: I'm like, are they cheering for someone from the Clippers?
Speaker 1: Are they cheering for the Sixers? And then as you
Speaker 1: just listening more closely and throughout the game, you could
Speaker 1: tell that they were channing MVP and certainly the Sixer
Speaker 1: fans were present in the building last night and that
Speaker 1: it was cool to see. But as far as Mitise
Speaker 1: Tyble goes, we know at this stage of his career
Speaker 1: he's not there yet where he's a shot creator for
Speaker 1: himself as much as we may like. And when you
Speaker 1: bring in a playmaker like James Harden, you add to
Speaker 1: him what Embie was doing with Thybul, cutting along the baseline,
Speaker 1: making himself available as that backdoor cutter, getting those easy dunks,
Speaker 1: lay up opportunities, and now you have James Harden who,
Speaker 1: as we saw on the fast break, his mind made up.
Speaker 1: He knew he was throwing that alley you to Matisse stable,
Speaker 1: rewarding the guy from running the floor playing good defense
Speaker 1: overall like he does, he knew what was going there,
Speaker 1: and then he hit him again for another one, a
Speaker 1: backdoor for a layup opportunity, and then he knocked down
Speaker 1: there three later on. So it's just encouraging to see him.
Speaker 1: When he plays like that, they are tough to beat
Speaker 1: because it's slashing, is cutting, making himself available, he has
Speaker 1: good hands, He goes up and he finishes with the
Speaker 1: dunk more so than he does with a layup, and
Speaker 1: then when the three point shot starts to fall, then
Speaker 1: that's something that will really make them even more dangerous
Speaker 1: team than they already are at this point. So really
Speaker 1: good to see him do that again, and you're gonna
Speaker 1: have to have that going forward. We know that going
Speaker 1: into the playoffs because there are gonna be a lot
Speaker 1: of wing players that are going to be tough to defend.
Speaker 1: But his energy, he never seems like he's fatigued, He
Speaker 1: never seems tired when they're back on the offensive end,
Speaker 1: and he just continues to find those little gas within
Speaker 1: the defense and make himself available once again for those
Speaker 1: easier opportunities. So again encouraging to see that last night,
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Speaker 1: be joining one our over game comical Gamblo. That was
Speaker 1: a theme in pregame media availability last night, talking about
Speaker 1: Matis growing into a starter this season because he did
Speaker 1: not start consistently early in the season, but now of
Speaker 1: course has become a consistent member of that starting five
Speaker 1: that has been so dangerous at times like last night.
Speaker 1: But worth noting that Doc Rivers said that they originally
Speaker 1: liked to sort of stick Matisse on the best defender
Speaker 1: a little bit into the game to add a lift
Speaker 1: off the bench and to slow down whatever the opposing
Speaker 1: team has going. But sometimes when you bring Matisse in
Speaker 1: off the bench, whoever that best player on the other
Speaker 1: team is has already gotten hot, they already have eight
Speaker 1: or ten points, they're already feeling themselves, and then Matis
Speaker 1: is maybe not quite as effective in the long run.
Speaker 1: And Doc Rivers says he's loved watching Matise sort of
Speaker 1: start to give great players trouble early, and I think
Speaker 1: that that was an interesting theme to watch. And then,
Speaker 1: of course you have to give him props for being
Speaker 1: ready and being able to play heavier minutes the way
Speaker 1: that he has, of course, averaging around twenty minutes per
Speaker 1: game in his first two NBA seasons, and then now
Speaker 1: as a as a more consistent starter, that that number
Speaker 1: continues to rise. So good for him for staying ready
Speaker 1: being able to play those heavier minutes. And then you
Speaker 1: guys have mentioned three point shooting. I just wanted to
Speaker 1: add the sixers each in that starting lineup each had
Speaker 1: at least one steal. They also all made threes, headlined
Speaker 1: of course by James Harden's four. But the efficiency was there.
Speaker 1: Joel Ebiad and Tyres Maxie each two for three from three,
Speaker 1: Matisse made his only attempt, and Tobias made two of
Speaker 1: them as well. So really cool to see when that
Speaker 1: first unit especially is clicking. They're playing really good defense
Speaker 1: as evidenced by the steals, and they're shooting really well
Speaker 1: evidenced by the three point shooting. So so really cool
Speaker 1: to see them sort of click on all cylinders last night, right,
Speaker 1: and when Doc says the defense stood out especially at
Speaker 1: the start, and the shooting at halftime wasn't where maybe
Speaker 1: they wanted it the three point shooting, it ends up
Speaker 1: the numbers look phenomenal. I mean, they all made one
Speaker 1: in the starting lineup, and for most of them it
Speaker 1: was two or more on only you know, three five.
Speaker 1: For Harden it was four of nine, but three or
Speaker 1: five attempts. So as efficiency from beyond the arc, like
Speaker 1: we've been saying, and the starting group continues to gel
Speaker 1: Iq sent sent me a question, where do you rank
Speaker 1: the tyrese and hardened backcourt among the top backcourts the NBA?
Speaker 1: And I think just by getting that question, it sort
Speaker 1: of is a good thing to have going if you're
Speaker 1: the sixers. The fact that Tyrese Maxie can have an
Speaker 1: eleven point game on a night where James Harden really
Speaker 1: has it going with twenty nine points, fifteen rebounds and
Speaker 1: seven assists. We've seen it the other way around. MAXI
Speaker 1: kind of picking up Harden in recent games, and that's
Speaker 1: a nice not even problems not the right word, devon,
Speaker 1: but when people are asking about where you rank tight
Speaker 1: Reas and Harden among the top backcourts, they kind of
Speaker 1: play off each other and whoever's got it going takes
Speaker 1: the lead, and Harden is going to be that guy
Speaker 1: on a lot of nights, and he was against the
Speaker 1: Clippers with a huge first half. But they're working with
Speaker 1: each other quite nicely and working off each other quite nicely.
Speaker 1: They are, and just to be fair to both of them,
Speaker 1: and I appreciate the question, it's a great question. However,
Speaker 1: for me, there's not enough of a sample size just yet.
Speaker 1: I want to see it a little bit longer before
Speaker 1: for I have an opportunity to really rank them as
Speaker 1: a backcourt. But so far, so good. The dynamic of
Speaker 1: Maxie's speed playing off of Harden's Hall of Fame ability
Speaker 1: that he has in year two and only less than
Speaker 1: fifteen games with these two in the lineup. It's a
Speaker 1: little unfair to put them in any category right now
Speaker 1: of a backcourt just yet until we see a little
Speaker 1: bit more, because I don't want to go too high,
Speaker 1: and then I don't want to go too low, knowing
Speaker 1: what we already have seen in the backcourt in the
Speaker 1: NBA so far this campaign. That have been together a
Speaker 1: lot longer. But I like what I see. I like
Speaker 1: the confidence that continues to build from Maxie playing with
Speaker 1: James Harden, always willing to learn, always willing to listen,
Speaker 1: and as you mentioned, the twenty nine points that Harden
Speaker 1: had to only Maxi's eleven. Harden had had it running.
Speaker 1: You found the hot hand and you kept going to it.
Speaker 1: Maxie got his later on, and that's all that That's
Speaker 1: all that they needed last night. They didn't need Tyrese
Speaker 1: Maxie to have his seventeen or eighteen or even more
Speaker 1: in that game last night. Just the way that things
Speaker 1: played out overall, especially when you also have the bonus
Speaker 1: of the eleven points from the Tea Stival in the
Speaker 1: starting lineup, as the double figures of the Tea Stival
Speaker 1: and starting lineup as well so I'll get back to
Speaker 1: me or us overall on the backcourt a little bit later,
Speaker 1: after we see them a little a little longer and
Speaker 1: have a better idea of where they fit in the
Speaker 1: structure of the rankings backcourt wise in the league. I mean, look,
Speaker 1: we can keep going for a while on how well
Speaker 1: the Sixers were able to play together last night, but
Speaker 1: I'm seeing some questions blsgs thoughts on the Sixers next
Speaker 1: two games against the Suns tomorrow and the Bucks on Tuesday,
Speaker 1: those of course two really big matchups. Yep, it's goods
Speaker 1: here to talk about the Phoenix Suns for sure. What's
Speaker 1: been going on with the Suns lately. They're obviously winning
Speaker 1: a ton of games this season, their first in the West.
Speaker 1: They have the best record in the league at six
Speaker 1: in fourteen, and they're on another long winning streak. So
Speaker 1: give us the rundown on the Suns of late. Yeah,
Speaker 1: So the winning streak that they're currently on is a
Speaker 1: seven game win streak right now and sixty and fourteen
Speaker 1: on the season with the best record. They've clinched the
Speaker 1: best record in the NBA for the twenty one twenty
Speaker 1: two campaign already, So that's out of the way, and
Speaker 1: they had just been playing really well. Devin Booker since
Speaker 1: he's returned from his protocol health and safety COVID protocol,
Speaker 1: they were still playing well. So without Chris Paul, believe
Speaker 1: the number is fourteen and four if I'm not mistaken,
Speaker 1: since Chris Paul has been out of the lineup after
Speaker 1: the All Star break and they've been playing some still
Speaker 1: just Phoenix Suns basketball. Everyone next man up stepping in
Speaker 1: Tory Craig who was acquired in the trade with the
Speaker 1: Indiana Pacers, Jabari Smith going to Indiana, Tory Craig coming
Speaker 1: back to Phoenix, and all he has done is fit
Speaker 1: right in with where he was before last season as
Speaker 1: part of the rotation of that finals run. Landry dam
Speaker 1: It still shooting the ball really well, DeAndre Ayton playing
Speaker 1: really well in the middle against a lot of good
Speaker 1: opponents of course in the middle. And then you have
Speaker 1: Chris Paul and now returning finally after for his first game,
Speaker 1: this past game that they have where they just got
Speaker 1: right back into it. They didn't skip a beat with
Speaker 1: who the Phoenix Suns are. They trust themselves, they trust
Speaker 1: the system that Monty Williams has running, and they believe
Speaker 1: most importantly every time that they step on the floor
Speaker 1: that they can beat any opponent. And the other good
Speaker 1: part about them and is that everyone there's no surprise anymore.
Speaker 1: Everyone knows who the Suns are, They're gunning for them,
Speaker 1: and they step up to the challenge every time. Now,
Speaker 1: the Sixers did play them really well earlier in February,
Speaker 1: second out of a back to back for the Suns,
Speaker 1: and the Sixers were up and later in the game,
Speaker 1: but the Suns ultimately came back and walked away with
Speaker 1: the w. So I believe that it will be a
Speaker 1: fun one for sure. And this is the first opportunity
Speaker 1: to see the Suns play the Sixers version with James
Speaker 1: Harton in the lineup as well. And yes, I did
Speaker 1: leave Michael a lot. I don't want to sit here
Speaker 1: and just start talking, you know, you know, But I mean, yeah,
Speaker 1: he's playing well too, I mean, and that's that's why
Speaker 1: he resigned him. That's why he extended him to be
Speaker 1: that that player that he is a defensive Player of
Speaker 1: the Year candidate, and he's just playing at that level
Speaker 1: and lifted up his offensive play as well, with his
Speaker 1: points per game has have gone up obviously, with Paul
Speaker 1: out and needing others to step up. Like we mentioned,
Speaker 1: McHale has done the exact same thing, and he's shooting
Speaker 1: the ball well, putting the ball on the floor, is
Speaker 1: still playing the phenomenal level of defense that he has.
Speaker 1: Genie said, of course, I hope Philly's own and Devon's
Speaker 1: cousin Micaal Bridges does well tomorrow. Oh there's more, but
Speaker 1: I would love for the home team to go a
Speaker 1: perfect three and l. So that was the second part
Speaker 1: of the message. And I think that this road trip,
Speaker 1: albeit just three games, but when you go out there
Speaker 1: and you play in LA and you're there for maybe
Speaker 1: an extra day or two because you got the Lakers
Speaker 1: and Clippers back to back, and then going to Phoenix,
Speaker 1: another spot where NBA players seemingly like to go, and
Speaker 1: it's the warm weather and all that. This trip has
Speaker 1: seemingly come at a great time with Harden and then
Speaker 1: trying to build this chemistry at this point late in
Speaker 1: the regular season. I think this is going to prove
Speaker 1: to be a really good and we can get Lawren's
Speaker 1: perspective on this in a second, but Divine, it feels
Speaker 1: like this is just a really good time for this
Speaker 1: trip to happen, regardless of the outcome against the Suns.
Speaker 1: You've you've already won the road trip with the first
Speaker 1: two games, and it feels like this, these three games
Speaker 1: in particular and where they're located, really came at a
Speaker 1: good time for the Sixers and Matt You're right, especially
Speaker 1: when you have an opportunity to bond even though it's
Speaker 1: late in the season and they've had these mini road
Speaker 1: trips and maybe go to Chicago and Milwaukee these few
Speaker 1: games that they'll have on the road, But as you
Speaker 1: pointed out, they are more of those those Eastern Conference
Speaker 1: trips where you don't have to travel very far, but
Speaker 1: y'a out on the West Coach. You leave on them Tuesday,
Speaker 1: you don't come back until what Monday after the Sun's
Speaker 1: game or a late Sunday night after the Sun's game,
Speaker 1: and you have an opportunity again where it's just you
Speaker 1: and the plenty six Er fans that were there last night,
Speaker 1: the coaching staff, and you have a chance to bond
Speaker 1: a little bit with your new teammates and DeAndre Jordan,
Speaker 1: Paul Millsett, and James Harden. So I agree with you.
Speaker 1: I think something like this is really good for them,
Speaker 1: and they have a few more road games to go.
Speaker 1: They're nine games left in the season and they have
Speaker 1: what five more road games after tomorrow's game against the
Speaker 1: Phoenix Suns, And it's just a good time for them
Speaker 1: to bonds. As I keep saying that, just to bond
Speaker 1: on the trip and get to know each other because
Speaker 1: because not only does it help of course with your
Speaker 1: your your friendship and all they're off the floor, that
Speaker 1: blends back to the floor also where you can talk
Speaker 1: about those types of things off the floor, and the
Speaker 1: next thing you know, you're feeling a little more comfortable
Speaker 1: when you get to the basketball court based on just
Speaker 1: a simple conversation that you may have had with your
Speaker 1: teammate away from the play a safe assumption to make. Indeed, Devon,
Speaker 1: it's something that the guys have talked about throughout this trip,
Speaker 1: but that they are so short on time to really
Speaker 1: gel and mesh together, at least among that sort of
Speaker 1: starting unit and working James Harden and Paul Millsop into
Speaker 1: this team late in this season, and they're relishing the
Speaker 1: opportunities to spend time with one another. You've seen the
Speaker 1: photos and videos that came out of shoot around over
Speaker 1: the last few days. The both shoot arounds, these guys
Speaker 1: not only enjoying the sunshine, but enjoying one another, and
Speaker 1: the vibes truly are high, or at least from what
Speaker 1: I've observed, it's a group that really does enjoy being
Speaker 1: with one another, and so I appreciate just being able
Speaker 1: to observe the way that they're coming together as teammates,
Speaker 1: sharing with one another on and off the court. It
Speaker 1: makes sense that the chemistry is building at a rapid
Speaker 1: rate because it does appear that they're they're really enjoying
Speaker 1: one another out here. I have to ask you this, Lauren,
Speaker 1: seeing the photos that are up on social media, the
Speaker 1: ones that you have up there as well, what's with
Speaker 1: the guys walking around barefoot? Knew? I knew you. We're
Speaker 1: gonna say it. What's happening here? I don't know? So
Speaker 1: so I believe that for better or for worse, Matisse's
Speaker 1: Bible is a little bit of a trailblazer there. For
Speaker 1: those that don't really understand how how an NBA road
Speaker 1: trip works. There's not that much time spent in transit.
Speaker 1: You sort of go from a hotel to a bus
Speaker 1: to a gym, back to the bus, back to the gym,
Speaker 1: um and it is it is the job of our
Speaker 1: wonderful equipment staff to make sure that the guys shoes
Speaker 1: are are ready for them when they get to the court.
Speaker 1: So I guess the airtime for a non basketball pair
Speaker 1: of shoes is pretty short. And Matisse, the Australian now legend,
Speaker 1: doesn't enjoy shoes that much. And look, I don't really
Speaker 1: support I don't really support this trend. It's something that
Speaker 1: I try to give them a little bit of grief
Speaker 1: about when I can, as that's not an adult way
Speaker 1: to be in society shoeless, But they don't care what
Speaker 1: I have to say. And I think that guys like
Speaker 1: Tobias Harris, like for Concorcmas, they've sort of started to
Speaker 1: embrace the trend, the shoeless trend. So I don't really
Speaker 1: know what to tell you. There's it's definitely strange, but
Speaker 1: if it's something that they want to bond over and
Speaker 1: it's gonna help with team chemistry, I guess. I guess
Speaker 1: be shoeless outside, I mean, it's a California vibe. I
Speaker 1: guess I don't really know what to say. I can't
Speaker 1: defend it, but the fact that they all do it together,
Speaker 1: like there's something in there about camaraderie, like like I
Speaker 1: don't know, I really don't. That's fair. You try, you
Speaker 1: did your best, and I'll take that. But it was
Speaker 1: weird when I saw it, and I thought that it
Speaker 1: was pretty funny because not only one photo, there were
Speaker 1: multiple photos. And then the one that Matt shared of
Speaker 1: course with the team the squad rolling deep, six players
Speaker 1: walking together throughout the concourse of the of the UCLA campus.
Speaker 1: I guess it is and no socks, only socks at
Speaker 1: least at least the ground is warm. I'll take that. Well.
Speaker 1: They even if they get dirty the socks they do
Speaker 1: have an endless supply. It seems like of NBA socks
Speaker 1: in all colors. But who knows how superstitious some of
Speaker 1: these guys are too. Casey Sunshine said, it seems like
Speaker 1: the California Sunshine did the team some good. Alex Subers
Speaker 1: got some great photos while they were in LA and
Speaker 1: the team looked like they were having a lot of
Speaker 1: fun with each other. So that's a lot of what
Speaker 1: we just talked about. Totally agree with Casey on that one,
Speaker 1: and Lauren this was mentioned on the NBC Sports Philadelphia
Speaker 1: broadcast about a dinner at Doc rivers is La residence
Speaker 1: and catching us some March Madness together as well. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that was a staff dinner that Dock through for his
Speaker 1: staff to sort of enjoy the weather and enjoy his time.
Speaker 1: And then he shared about it at shoot around that
Speaker 1: that's something that he likes to do to give back
Speaker 1: to the group. So again, the West coast trip not
Speaker 1: just good for player camaraderie, good for team camaraderie, good
Speaker 1: for everybody to get a little bit of vitamin D
Speaker 1: get outside before getting back to Philadelphia and getting ready
Speaker 1: for the real work to begin this season. I never
Speaker 1: used to believe in sort of weather's ability to change
Speaker 1: a mood, but having spent four days in Los Angeles,
Speaker 1: I think I get it now. I got to be honest.
Speaker 1: I love it. And speaking of March Madness, I heard
Speaker 1: a lot of people involved in this space and with
Speaker 1: the Sixers. Devon mentioned Saint Peter's with the Wind. Doc
Speaker 1: Rivers in his postgame mentioned Saint Peter's with the Wind,
Speaker 1: So I wanted to shout out the Saint Peter's Peacocks
Speaker 1: playing in Philadelphia and becoming the first fifteen seed to
Speaker 1: ever reach the Elite eight. Doc was also really happy
Speaker 1: post game about North Carolina and Hubert Davis answering, so
Speaker 1: now he doesn't know who to root for. I guess
Speaker 1: in that one with Saint Peter's playing against North Carolina.
Speaker 1: But that's kind of adding to all of this. There's
Speaker 1: just basketball everywhere you look. And one of the guys
Speaker 1: college in pro and one of the guys in that
Speaker 1: photo of the squad rolling deep was Isaiah Joe, who's
Speaker 1: Arkansas Razorbacks are still alive. He got in late the
Speaker 1: game against the Clippers, allowed the Sixers to go a
Speaker 1: little bit deeper into the bench. And if now is
Speaker 1: an appropriate time to talk about beball Paul, then let's
Speaker 1: do it, because I think my favorite question that we
Speaker 1: got on this space so far was just Paul Reid,
Speaker 1: question mark and Paul. It was from Dave And now
Speaker 1: I believe that that's actually supposed to be read Paul Reid,
Speaker 1: not Paul Reid. Yeah, true, Sorry about that. Yeah, there
Speaker 1: you go. Continue. In six minutes, I only know him
Speaker 1: as beball Paul. In six minutes, beeball Paul with eight points,
Speaker 1: two rebounds, one block, one assist, three steals. Like we
Speaker 1: said earlier, missed a three, but made his four other shots.
Speaker 1: And that's what you love to see, is somebody playing
Speaker 1: that hard late in the game. And Paul Reid's motor
Speaker 1: is out of this world. I know he didn't try
Speaker 1: for a reverse dunk again, but it was the steal
Speaker 1: that led that led to the fast break dunk, and
Speaker 1: he went a little conservative with it this time around,
Speaker 1: as he should have to that last attempt. But now, yeah,
Speaker 1: the minutes that he provided and albeit Leite, it's one
Speaker 1: that you know, you both know in sixty fans been
Speaker 1: clamoring for him to get another opportunity to see what
Speaker 1: he could do with some minutes, and he showed out
Speaker 1: well last night and that one, so maybe that will.
Speaker 1: It may not come in the Phoene game. It may
Speaker 1: not be in the Milwaukee game on Tuesday. It could
Speaker 1: be a game against the Detroit Pistons, where Doc Rivers says, Okay,
Speaker 1: Paul Reid, give me five minutes here. I want to
Speaker 1: see if you can provide something with your energy and
Speaker 1: your athleticism as well, and just be a sound basketball
Speaker 1: player for what we're asking of you during that time
Speaker 1: and that's what we're all looking for as we close
Speaker 1: the season down. We're seeing Shake Milton and furkn Quorkmons
Speaker 1: more regularly now after the game on Monday against the
Speaker 1: Miami Heat, and they've played again well once again being
Speaker 1: back in the rotation. So who knows what this could
Speaker 1: ultimately turn out to be. DeAndre Jordans your primary, but
Speaker 1: there may be a matchup with Paul Reid or even
Speaker 1: Paul Millsack fit better schematically and with what Doc Rivers
Speaker 1: and Dan Burke liked to do defensively with him as
Speaker 1: a young, more energetic athletic guy, and the same thing offensively,
Speaker 1: where he might be a solid pick and role player
Speaker 1: or one that sneakily gets backdoor as well and has
Speaker 1: an all youth opportunity or simply crashing glass like he does.
Speaker 1: So good minutes from him last night, and we'll see
Speaker 1: where it goes from here later on in the future.
Speaker 1: The Paul Patrol, Paul Reid, Paul Millsap, I try not
Speaker 1: to miss it. I don't know. Well Millsap didn't play,
Speaker 1: so it I vowed to try to never miss a
Speaker 1: Paul Patrol outing again I missed. They played together for
Speaker 1: two seconds at the end of the first half recently
Speaker 1: in a recent home game, and I that one got
Speaker 1: away from me. But the Paul I love when the
Speaker 1: Paul patrol is out there, potentially together with the Milwaukee
Speaker 1: game coming up. That reminds me of when I talked
Speaker 1: to Paul Reid recently and asked him who he likes
Speaker 1: to see on the other side, just for whatever reason,
Speaker 1: if he played him in college or played with him
Speaker 1: in college, and the first player that he named was Yannis,
Speaker 1: And I think it's because he likes the challenge of
Speaker 1: playing against guys of that caliber, and he had the
Speaker 1: block earlier this year. So Reid really gave the team
Speaker 1: some energy, and I imagine that the bench was fired
Speaker 1: up to see Paul play so well at the end. Yeah,
Speaker 1: the bench vibes always high for Paul Reid. They loved
Speaker 1: to cheer him on, and there were some good reaction
Speaker 1: shots of the guys on the bench embracing Paul Reid
Speaker 1: and others last night. They were really excited about Danny
Speaker 1: Green's work off the bench. They were really excited about
Speaker 1: some of DeAndre Jordan's work off the bench. DeAndre Jordan
Speaker 1: Worth noting a second best or rather third best on
Speaker 1: the team, but nine rebounds a bench high for the Sixers.
Speaker 1: He struggled a little bit early, but he found his footing,
Speaker 1: held it down, and those nine boards five offensive rebounds
Speaker 1: for DeAndre pretty impressive stuff. Yes, the vibes were high. Again,
Speaker 1: I know I already said it once on this podcast,
Speaker 1: so I apologize if you if you've already heard me
Speaker 1: do it. But the sun was bright and the vibrations
Speaker 1: were right. That's got to be the main takeaway from
Speaker 1: the Sixers time in LA. Maybe a slogan for the
Speaker 1: playoffs or the rest of the season. I like it
Speaker 1: that much, but I don't know. It definitely works when
Speaker 1: the sun is shining out there on the West Coast.
Speaker 1: I like what Winona has been saying this morning. Winona said,
Speaker 1: this is straight Callie. I lived in California for twelve years.
Speaker 1: The group broke out last night. What do you think
Speaker 1: about Shake doing his work? We haven't talked about Shake
Speaker 1: yet this morning, so let's do so. Of course, we
Speaker 1: mentioned him in the box score recap, but seven points,
Speaker 1: five assists. That five assists mark a bench high and
Speaker 1: second only to James Harden among the group. Two rebounds
Speaker 1: struggled a little bit more from deep, just one for
Speaker 1: four from deep, but finding his rhythm to be sure.
Speaker 1: Really cool to watch Shake sort of settle in and
Speaker 1: figure out how to be most effective with this group.
Speaker 1: A reminder that Shake dealt with an injury at training camp.
Speaker 1: He dealt with COVID. He had a back injury that
Speaker 1: we didn't talk a ton about because I think Shake
Speaker 1: didn't talk a ton about it, but he really it
Speaker 1: was hard on him. So to see him get back
Speaker 1: after a tumultuous, let's say honestly, first seventy percent or
Speaker 1: so of the season, I think is a welcome sight
Speaker 1: and good to know that he's going to be there.
Speaker 1: He's going to be available down the stretch for this team.
Speaker 1: And we've already seen Shake Milton come up big many
Speaker 1: times in his young career, So looking forward to seeing
Speaker 1: what he's able to do. Devon any thoughts on what
Speaker 1: Shake has been able to do over the last few games, well,
Speaker 1: we highlighted, of course, the Miami game where he had
Speaker 1: the twenty points. That was great to see the game
Speaker 1: against the LA Lakers on Wednesday. Just a solid performance,
Speaker 1: nothing really spectacular, but solid, And I think that's all
Speaker 1: you're really asking for him at this point, just to
Speaker 1: be solid, steady, don't make mistakes, and be himself. And
Speaker 1: if he sees an opportunity where he feels like he
Speaker 1: has an advantage and mismatches to get a bucket, then
Speaker 1: go do it. So last night solid again, good enough
Speaker 1: for him to continue to get minutes in the rotation,
Speaker 1: nothing to pull him out of the lineup at all.
Speaker 1: Next up against the Phoenix Sun. So just solid overall.
Speaker 1: That's Bluecoat's legend. Shake Milton, and I'm gonna see this.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna this time to explain a little bit more
Speaker 1: about how the Bluecoats punched their playoff ticket or clinched
Speaker 1: their playoff birth. They did it on their home court.
Speaker 1: And if you haven't been to a Bluecoats game, they
Speaker 1: have four more regular season games the Sixers G League
Speaker 1: team that plays in Wilmington, Delaware. They're all at home
Speaker 1: and they're all coming up, so Sunday afternoon, Tuesday at
Speaker 1: eleven am, and then two more after that as well.
Speaker 1: And Miles Powell is on the Sixers roster as a
Speaker 1: two way player. In the clinching win, had twenty points
Speaker 1: in the first half. Here's a fun fact that ties
Speaker 1: in a little bit more of what we've talked about
Speaker 1: about Miles Powell. He was played at Seaton Hall where
Speaker 1: he was recruited by then assistant coach Shaheen Holloway, the
Speaker 1: head coach of the Saint Peter's University Peacocks. So Miles
Speaker 1: Powell and Shaheen Halloway, who's really stepped into the national spotlight,
Speaker 1: have a very good relationship. And Charles Bassey was with
Speaker 1: the Bluecoats to help them clinch the spot big double
Speaker 1: double for him nineteen and twelve with three. So the
Speaker 1: Blue Coats are rolling right now. They're in the playoffs
Speaker 1: and they keep producing players that get into the sixers
Speaker 1: rotation like a shake Milton. So the growth of the
Speaker 1: g League, the growth of the Blue Coats, it is real.
Speaker 1: And Miles Pale and Charles Bassi and company have things
Speaker 1: rolling under Kobe Carl in Delaware. You love to see it.
Speaker 1: Matt Murphy always speech Murphy, always there, always there for
Speaker 1: the Coats content that is for short, big time, big
Speaker 1: time stuff. I want to go ahead and address a
Speaker 1: question or a comment rather from Gina. I am once
Speaker 1: again asking for a new episode of the Big Niang Theory.
Speaker 1: I will make you guys a promise you're gonna get
Speaker 1: one in the next few days. I have some editing
Speaker 1: to do this after Nude. It might not be exactly
Speaker 1: who you're thinking for the next guest, but I'm telling
Speaker 1: you it's a really good episode. Someone who played well
Speaker 1: last night, who's played really well this week. I'm gonna
Speaker 1: I'm gonna leave that as the hint for this guest.
Speaker 1: But I'm telling you, guys, you're going to enjoy this one.
Speaker 1: And then we have some more episodes that George and
Speaker 1: I are going to record in the coming days. If
Speaker 1: you're unaware of the Big Niang Theory is George Niang's podcast,
Speaker 1: in which he interviews his seventy six or teammates and
Speaker 1: gets to know them on a deeper level. If you
Speaker 1: haven't listened to the existing episodes, their interviews with George
Speaker 1: with Matisse, with Tyrese, with fur Coon. Who am I
Speaker 1: forgetting Matt Murphy? I feel bad, But there are more
Speaker 1: episodes coming down the pike very shortly, and I'm really
Speaker 1: excited to share some in depth content with some new
Speaker 1: players for you guys to get to know a little
Speaker 1: bit better. I think you got everyone, you were no
Speaker 1: better than me, but I don't think that you listen anyone,
Speaker 1: and I see your request, continue to send your request
Speaker 1: tag George, tag me let us know who you want
Speaker 1: to hear on the podcast next. I promise we have
Speaker 1: some really exciting guests coming up, some verbal commitments to
Speaker 1: do the show that we're excited to share with you guys. Well.
Speaker 1: SG said, also feels great to be back on and
Speaker 1: listening to these Twitter spaces that you guys do. I
Speaker 1: don't really get to listen to too many of these
Speaker 1: because I'm busy with school the next or if something
Speaker 1: else pops up. So I appreciate you guys for doing this.
Speaker 1: Go out, all Caps, go out and get that win tomorrow, Sixers.
Speaker 1: That's the energy we need heading into the Sun's game.
Speaker 1: We love it. Thanks for listening, no doubt, guys, EDNYE
Speaker 1: last thoughts feelings before we wrap this one up. We
Speaker 1: will hope, guys, to be back with you on Monday
Speaker 1: after a win over the Phoenix Suns. Of course, holding
Speaker 1: the best record in the NBA right now, this is
Speaker 1: a big one for the seventy sixers, who are just
Speaker 1: half a game out of the first spot in the
Speaker 1: Eastern Conference. Matt Devon. I'll hope to see you both
Speaker 1: on Monday. Any final thoughts, Big tests on Sunday, and
Speaker 1: it should be a good contest to see how they
Speaker 1: perform against the best team in the NBA. So I'm
Speaker 1: looking forward to it and I'm looking forward to hopefully
Speaker 1: being back with you both and everyone else out there
Speaker 1: in the spaces world on Monday. Six Ers Twitter Spaces
Speaker 1: after Sixers wins. Thanks everyone, That's all I've got, Lauren.
Speaker 1: If you've got a final thought, please do but thanks
Speaker 1: to Von, thanks to all the listeners. Thanks to you, Lauren,
Speaker 1: and continue to bring the good vibes to the road
Speaker 1: trip and the Sixers are looking to keep it rolling.
Speaker 1: You already know what my final thought is, as as
Speaker 1: was the case in la as is the case in Phoenix,
Speaker 1: the sun is bright, the vibrations are right. Your seventy
Speaker 1: sixers are on a roll, and it's going to be
Speaker 1: an exciting rest of the regular season into the playoffs.
Speaker 1: Looking forward to talking to you both a lot more
Speaker 1: as the regular season wraps up and the playoffs began.
Speaker 1: Matt Murphy, Devon Givens, thank you so much. As always,
Speaker 1: thank you guys over under. It was two and a
Speaker 1: half on the sun is bright and the vibrations are right,
Speaker 1: and you hit it with three if you hit the over. Yeah,
Speaker 1: if you guys, if you guys had the over, congratulate
Speaker 1: Asian's cash in. I appreciate everybody and we will talk
Speaker 1: soon