WEBVTT - Sixers Beat Cavs, Enter All-Star Break | Postgame with Embiid, Maxey, Melton 0:00:00.240 --> 0:00:03.400 This podcast is part of the seventy Sixers podcast network 0:00:03.600 --> 0:00:13.640 search seventy Sixers Insiders wherever you get your podcasts day Everybody, Yeah, 0:00:13.960 --> 0:00:25.160 seventy six Ers. Good morning, everybody. Welcome back to another 0:00:25.360 --> 0:00:28.840 posts Sixers win reaction. I'm Lauren Rosen. Matt Murphy is here. 0:00:28.960 --> 0:00:31.280 The seventy Sixers get it done and they're a last 0:00:31.280 --> 0:00:34.360 one ahead of the All Star Break. Six double figure performances. 0:00:34.560 --> 0:00:36.680 Matt Murphy, Good morning. How good did it feel to 0:00:36.680 --> 0:00:39.600 get that win last night? They were able to stop 0:00:39.680 --> 0:00:44.320 Cleveland's seven game winning shriek in the process, one eighteen, 0:00:44.560 --> 0:00:48.440 one twelve for their fourth straight win, meaning the Sixers 0:00:48.479 --> 0:00:50.760 a good way to go into the break. A really 0:00:50.800 --> 0:00:55.920 strong first half, another really strong shooting performance from this 0:00:56.160 --> 0:00:59.280 Sixers team. They came out really hot out of the gates, 0:00:59.440 --> 0:01:02.840 especially from three. James Harden had a big first quarter. 0:01:02.960 --> 0:01:08.440 Joel Embiid hit a very impressive milestone. So they end up, 0:01:08.520 --> 0:01:11.319 you know, holding on against one of the other top 0:01:11.480 --> 0:01:14.640 contenders in the East, and it was a good way 0:01:14.680 --> 0:01:16.520 to go into the break. And a lot happened early 0:01:16.560 --> 0:01:20.600 in the game. Joel Embied becomes the fastest Sixer to 0:01:20.720 --> 0:01:24.120 ever reach the ten thousand career point threshold. He surpassed 0:01:24.120 --> 0:01:26.959 Alan Iverson for the fastest to do. So we'll hear 0:01:27.000 --> 0:01:30.000 from Joel about hitting that milestone in just a couple 0:01:30.000 --> 0:01:32.280 of minutes. But as always, let's start with some notables 0:01:32.360 --> 0:01:34.679 from the box score. If you guys hear anything that 0:01:34.720 --> 0:01:36.920 you want us to dive into as I go through this, 0:01:37.319 --> 0:01:40.600 please submit again if you're listening live, a comment or 0:01:40.640 --> 0:01:43.720 a DM, and we'll make sure to taylor the conversation accordingly. 0:01:43.920 --> 0:01:47.040 So quickly through the box score, Joel Embied leads the 0:01:47.120 --> 0:01:49.160 way once again. He continues to be one of the 0:01:49.240 --> 0:01:53.040 league's leading scorers. Twenty nine points, fourteen rebounds, five assists, 0:01:53.080 --> 0:01:56.320 two steals and a block. He shot eleven for twelve, 0:01:56.360 --> 0:01:58.240 but from the free throw line nine for twenty one 0:01:58.320 --> 0:02:00.640 overall in thirty nine minutes of play. Like we said, 0:02:00.680 --> 0:02:03.600 all five starters finished in double figures plus Tyrese Maxie 0:02:04.040 --> 0:02:08.160 James Harden nineteen points, four rebounds, twelve assists, a steel 0:02:08.320 --> 0:02:11.919 and a block. D'y Anthony Melton seventeen points, two rebounds, 0:02:12.000 --> 0:02:15.359 four assists. He shot very well four for eight overall, 0:02:15.480 --> 0:02:17.680 seven for seven from the line, more free throws than 0:02:17.760 --> 0:02:19.799 usual for Dy Anthony Melton last night, and some big 0:02:19.840 --> 0:02:22.960 ones down the stretch when it got close. Thirteen points 0:02:22.960 --> 0:02:25.679 for Tobias Harris plus two rebounds and two steals, ten 0:02:25.720 --> 0:02:28.040 points for PJ Tucker plus three rebounds and a steel. 0:02:28.080 --> 0:02:31.160 PJ and to Bias both very efficient from the field. 0:02:31.200 --> 0:02:34.160 PJ four for five, to Bias five for eight. To 0:02:34.200 --> 0:02:37.079 Bias shot three for four from deep. PJ shot two 0:02:37.120 --> 0:02:39.960 for two from deep. Tyrese Maxie LEDs a bench once again, 0:02:40.200 --> 0:02:43.080 sixteen points, two rebounds, two assists. He shot six for 0:02:43.160 --> 0:02:45.080 twelve from the field, two for four from three in 0:02:45.160 --> 0:02:48.120 his twenty eight minutes of play. A good night for 0:02:48.160 --> 0:02:50.639 the team, especially in the first half. Again, got a 0:02:50.639 --> 0:02:53.240 little closer than they wanted it too in the second 0:02:53.240 --> 0:02:55.160 half of Matt Murphy. When you look at the team stats, 0:02:55.160 --> 0:02:58.560 what sort of stands out to you on this one? Well, quickly, 0:02:58.639 --> 0:03:02.440 on the milestone for Joel Embiid hitting ten thousand points, 0:03:02.480 --> 0:03:05.280 you mentioned he did so faster than Allen iverson the 0:03:05.360 --> 0:03:08.480 fastest sixer of all time to do so. To reach 0:03:08.520 --> 0:03:11.840 ten thousand, it was three hundred and seventy three games 0:03:11.840 --> 0:03:17.480 four Mbid three hundred and seventy eight for iverson. Surprisingly 0:03:17.480 --> 0:03:19.280 when it comes to the box score. And by the way, 0:03:19.320 --> 0:03:22.120 if you want to let us know what your favorite 0:03:22.160 --> 0:03:25.040 moment of the sixer season prior to the All Star 0:03:25.120 --> 0:03:28.200 break was, please send us a tweet, click on the 0:03:28.240 --> 0:03:31.320 purple icon the chat box on the bottom right, send 0:03:31.360 --> 0:03:33.760 us a DM by clicking on our icons and messaging 0:03:33.840 --> 0:03:36.320 us directly, and we'll read some of those. But as 0:03:36.520 --> 0:03:39.440 do that as we continue to break down the box 0:03:39.480 --> 0:03:43.360 score and move along here with our reaction. But surprisingly, Lauren, 0:03:43.440 --> 0:03:47.880 my box score takeaway is going to be an individual 0:03:48.000 --> 0:03:49.960 rather than a team stat. I think it is the 0:03:50.040 --> 0:03:53.480 seventeen points for de Anthony Melton to get back on 0:03:53.600 --> 0:03:57.680 track heading into the break. He it was a lot 0:03:57.680 --> 0:04:00.880 of games before the break, and that's something that not 0:04:00.960 --> 0:04:03.640 only Doc Rivers has talked about, but the players and 0:04:03.760 --> 0:04:06.920 players from other teams, coaches from other teams playing not 0:04:07.000 --> 0:04:10.360 just half of your season, but really a lot of 0:04:10.360 --> 0:04:15.120 your season before getting a few days off. And with Melton, 0:04:15.440 --> 0:04:18.599 he has had such strong stretches this year, but he's 0:04:18.640 --> 0:04:22.200 also had tough defensive assignments throughout the year. So for 0:04:22.279 --> 0:04:25.720 him to come away feeling good about his offense as 0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:28.760 well and hit some clutch free throws down the stretch. 0:04:29.040 --> 0:04:31.440 That is sort of a way that I can get 0:04:31.440 --> 0:04:33.919 around not picking a team stat that by highlighting the 0:04:33.920 --> 0:04:36.640 free throw shooting, and he definitely contributed to that. They 0:04:36.680 --> 0:04:40.080 only missed two as a team twenty seven. For twenty nine, 0:04:40.440 --> 0:04:43.240 he made all seven of his like we talked about, 0:04:43.480 --> 0:04:46.000 and they were big ones down the stretch to put 0:04:46.000 --> 0:04:49.159 the finishing touches on it. So I come away looking 0:04:49.160 --> 0:04:52.520 at d' anthony Melton on the box score and feeling 0:04:52.520 --> 0:04:56.239 good about that. We can hear from D'Anthony Melton himself. 0:04:56.320 --> 0:04:58.480 In the morning, I talked to Tyrese Maxie in our 0:04:58.480 --> 0:05:02.000 Courtside comparison series present it by Nerd Wallet. Tyrese said 0:05:02.040 --> 0:05:04.960 about the teams starting one and four this season, again 0:05:04.960 --> 0:05:06.880 as we sort of do a little retrospective on the 0:05:06.880 --> 0:05:09.920 first chunk of the regular season, Tyrese in the morning said, 0:05:09.920 --> 0:05:11.880 I'm proud. I always talk about how we started out 0:05:11.920 --> 0:05:14.560 one and four and everybody was writing us off. We 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:17.120 stayed resilient, we stuck together, and now we're here. Then, 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:19.960 sure enough they get the victory last night to rise 0:05:20.040 --> 0:05:22.800 to thirty eight wins on the season. After that one 0:05:22.800 --> 0:05:25.680 and four start, d' anthony Melton discussed it coming off 0:05:25.720 --> 0:05:30.680 the court, So let's hear from d' anthony d' anthony Melton. 0:05:31.040 --> 0:05:32.800 You guys letting get a little closer than you wanted 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:34.920 it too. But you've talked all season about wanting to 0:05:34.960 --> 0:05:37.240 figure out ways to win. How did you guys figured 0:05:37.240 --> 0:05:39.840 it out down the stretch tonight? We just executed. I 0:05:39.880 --> 0:05:42.400 think we got stops late. We hear free though, So 0:05:42.440 --> 0:05:44.440 I think that's the biggest thing. You know, the team 0:05:44.480 --> 0:05:47.520 like that, every quick explosive and yeah, so he's got 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:50.159 to keep, you know, maintaining with them. Last game ahead 0:05:50.200 --> 0:05:52.320 of the All Star break. You guys started this season 0:05:52.520 --> 0:05:54.719 one and four. You've talked about it a lot. You 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:58.400 go into the break thirty eight and nineteen. What is 0:05:58.440 --> 0:06:00.640 working for you guys and how much have you made 0:06:00.680 --> 0:06:02.920 over these last couple of months. Man, we're just playing together. 0:06:03.400 --> 0:06:05.080 I think we realize what kind of team we have, 0:06:05.200 --> 0:06:07.400 you know, guys, coaches, staff and stuff like that, and 0:06:07.440 --> 0:06:09.560 we just utilized in it. We got a lot of 0:06:09.600 --> 0:06:11.960 guys that can killed people in a lot of different ways. 0:06:11.960 --> 0:06:13.520 So we just got to keep fighting and keep going 0:06:13.520 --> 0:06:15.800 and play defense. So ellenbiad led the way sort of 0:06:15.800 --> 0:06:17.840 across the board. For you guys tonight, it's your first 0:06:17.880 --> 0:06:20.880 season with him. What's it like to be Joellenbiad's teammate 0:06:20.920 --> 0:06:24.240 when he plays this way? It's just so dominant. I mean, 0:06:24.320 --> 0:06:26.200 I don't think anybody in the league can really, you know, 0:06:26.640 --> 0:06:28.960 stop him. All I can do is hope to contain 0:06:29.040 --> 0:06:31.159 him sending double teams to triple a team. So you know, 0:06:31.160 --> 0:06:34.359 he's getting open shots for guys like me, Joyce tires 0:06:34.680 --> 0:06:37.240 everybody really, so he's just you know, he's been a 0:06:37.279 --> 0:06:39.919 team player. Anthony, thank you, Go get some rest. Thank you. 0:06:40.760 --> 0:06:43.320 Doc Rivers was funny last night after the game, Matt 0:06:43.360 --> 0:06:45.680 talking about how they got to win. He said it 0:06:45.800 --> 0:06:48.000 was really good when the clock ran out. He said 0:06:48.000 --> 0:06:49.799 that he felt the All Star breaks sort of started 0:06:49.839 --> 0:06:52.279 a little bit for his team at halftime after that 0:06:52.440 --> 0:06:55.680 excellent first half, and guys liked Anthony Melton have certainly 0:06:55.760 --> 0:06:59.599 earned the right to a few days off their feet. Matt, 0:06:59.640 --> 0:07:01.960 I know we're going to hear from Tyrese, from Joel, 0:07:02.080 --> 0:07:05.000 but thoughts on Dy, Anthony or anyone else on this 0:07:05.080 --> 0:07:07.840 box score before we hear from those guys. I had 0:07:08.040 --> 0:07:12.440 mentioned Harden earlier his first quarter was actually eight points 0:07:12.480 --> 0:07:15.800 and eight assists. It seems like Cleveland has been prone 0:07:15.800 --> 0:07:19.640 to some slow starts in there, not only the last 0:07:19.680 --> 0:07:23.360 game against the Sixers in Philadelphia, but even a couple 0:07:23.520 --> 0:07:26.360 more leading into the All Star breaks. So the Sixers 0:07:26.360 --> 0:07:28.640 were able to come out and build up enough of 0:07:28.680 --> 0:07:32.600 a lead to maintain and they shot seven for eight 0:07:32.640 --> 0:07:38.520 in the first quarter. Yeah, I was gonna say, some options, Lauren, 0:07:38.600 --> 0:07:42.520 that we can consider throughout for first half moments. We've 0:07:42.520 --> 0:07:46.040 talked a lot about Joel's fifty point games against Utah 0:07:46.160 --> 0:07:50.640 November Charlotte in December. The Utah statline was crazy and 0:07:50.680 --> 0:07:55.160 worth repeating. Fifty nine points, eleven rebounds, eight assists, seven 0:07:55.200 --> 0:07:59.119 block shots, some highlight worthy defensive plays to save that game, 0:08:00.120 --> 0:08:03.640 like the celebrations he had in those moments with his 0:08:03.680 --> 0:08:08.080 son Arthur, and then the Denver game more recently, almost 0:08:08.280 --> 0:08:14.520 fifty in a really big spotlight forty seven points, eighteen rebounds, 0:08:14.600 --> 0:08:19.440 five assists, three steals and two blocks, a big time 0:08:20.560 --> 0:08:23.000 dagger late in that game, and the moment of James 0:08:23.040 --> 0:08:26.520 Harden jumping on mbads back. Some of those things stick 0:08:26.600 --> 0:08:29.560 with me. I know. We did get a message from 0:08:29.600 --> 0:08:33.400 Mary saying that her favorite moment was Shake's half court 0:08:33.440 --> 0:08:36.400 shot at the Knicks on Christmas Day, which for an 0:08:36.440 --> 0:08:39.320 individual play has to rank up there. But just some 0:08:39.360 --> 0:08:43.480 options as we continue to move along, not totally getting 0:08:43.480 --> 0:08:47.160 off of the Cleveland game, but just those thoughts going 0:08:47.160 --> 0:08:49.080 through my head. And if anyone else wants to chime in, 0:08:49.120 --> 0:08:52.360 please do Yeah, Matt, I can go ahead and give 0:08:52.440 --> 0:08:56.160 mine Marcus. Marcus and I share the same, the same 0:08:56.160 --> 0:08:58.720 memorable moment from the first chunk of the season. He said, 0:08:58.720 --> 0:09:01.720 speaking of starting one in four, how about Tyrese Maxie 0:09:01.760 --> 0:09:04.600 to get the second win when he scored like crazy 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:07.840 in Toronto. That's one that I've talked about this season already, 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:10.960 but I'll go ahead and recycle it and echo Marcus's thoughts. 0:09:11.080 --> 0:09:14.760 That one, of course, was back in October. We've heard 0:09:14.760 --> 0:09:16.520 it a lot. They started one and four in order 0:09:16.559 --> 0:09:18.160 to get to two and four. It took a heck 0:09:18.160 --> 0:09:21.320 of a performance from Tyrese Maxie on a career night 0:09:21.760 --> 0:09:24.760 in Toronto. Was the second of two games in Toronto, 0:09:25.400 --> 0:09:28.840 and Tyrese finished with a whopping forty four points eight rebounds. 0:09:28.880 --> 0:09:30.719 Eight rebounds stands out in that line. I don't know 0:09:30.760 --> 0:09:33.640 if I had fully processed that one before forty four points, 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:36.800 eight rebounds, four assists, and a steal. He shot fifteen 0:09:36.880 --> 0:09:39.120 for twenty on the night. He made nine threes and 0:09:39.200 --> 0:09:41.280 nine for twelve from three, and of course made his 0:09:41.320 --> 0:09:44.240 first seven and five for six from the free throw 0:09:44.240 --> 0:09:47.320 line in forty minutes of play. And in hindsight, tyres 0:09:47.360 --> 0:09:50.000 has talked about that game as really an opportunity for 0:09:50.080 --> 0:09:51.600 him to say, you know what, the team really needs 0:09:51.640 --> 0:09:54.840 me here, No Joel that night, the team needs me 0:09:54.920 --> 0:09:57.440 to help figure out how to start getting some wins. 0:09:57.440 --> 0:10:00.520 And cool to see a then twenty one year old 0:10:00.600 --> 0:10:03.360 figure it out for his crew. So Marcus thinks for 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:06.280 the answer, we're going to go through some more. But 0:10:06.400 --> 0:10:08.600 on the topic of both Joel and Tyrese, Matt, I 0:10:08.640 --> 0:10:14.800 think let's just hear from the two of them right now. 0:10:15.600 --> 0:10:18.320 So here's Joel and Tyrese. Last night. For some context, 0:10:18.360 --> 0:10:21.240 Tyrese was doing media at his locker. The guys sort 0:10:21.240 --> 0:10:24.760 of can choose their own adventure after games when asked 0:10:24.760 --> 0:10:26.480 to speak to the media. Sometimes they come to the podium, 0:10:26.520 --> 0:10:29.160 sometimes they speak at their locker. Last night a celebratory 0:10:29.200 --> 0:10:31.320 environment form not only winning the game but getting to 0:10:31.320 --> 0:10:32.839 the All Star Break, Tyrese was going to talk to 0:10:32.880 --> 0:10:35.160 the media at his locker. Joel came over in the 0:10:35.160 --> 0:10:37.280 Big Energy Chain, which of course is won by the 0:10:37.280 --> 0:10:39.679 sixer that does the best job during the postgame lift. 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:42.560 Joel last night was the postgame lift champ, so he 0:10:42.600 --> 0:10:44.760 came over in the Big Energy Chain, plopped himself down 0:10:44.800 --> 0:10:47.559 next to Tyrese, and they did media together. So I'll 0:10:47.640 --> 0:10:49.439 let you guys listen to the two of them going 0:10:49.480 --> 0:10:51.200 back and forth. There's a funny moment where they sort 0:10:51.200 --> 0:10:53.439 of do impressions of each other. If it's confusing at all, 0:10:53.480 --> 0:10:55.400 we can we can explain it afterwards, but I think 0:10:55.440 --> 0:10:57.680 it's going to speak for itself. Take a listen to 0:10:57.720 --> 0:11:03.160 Joel and Tyrese together postgame. Uh, you never know, just 0:11:03.280 --> 0:11:05.120 like you said, you know, as a game of once, 0:11:05.559 --> 0:11:08.040 that should pretty good team over there. Um. You know 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:11.440 that going game, you know, a lot of teams troubles um, 0:11:11.480 --> 0:11:13.360 you know, and that second half of the season then 0:11:13.760 --> 0:11:16.960 the playoffs. Obviously we knew that we're gonna make of one. 0:11:17.160 --> 0:11:19.599 It was all about you know, uh, you know, we 0:11:19.760 --> 0:11:22.600 sustaining then you know how we were gonna stop him. Man. 0:11:23.240 --> 0:11:25.840 Uh we made uh, we got the stops one we 0:11:25.880 --> 0:11:28.280 needed them so well. In the first half of the season, 0:11:28.600 --> 0:11:30.920 Terrise had his first injury as a pro, He came back, 0:11:30.960 --> 0:11:33.480 he learned to play multiple roles. You've been his sort 0:11:33.480 --> 0:11:35.400 of biggest cheerleader since day one. So what do you 0:11:35.400 --> 0:11:37.560 make of the way he's battled through adversity this season? 0:11:38.280 --> 0:11:47.760 H Okay, that's a good answer question. No, But I 0:11:47.880 --> 0:11:50.840 mean that was that was his first time, you know, 0:11:50.920 --> 0:11:54.440 going through an injury. Uh, for someone that had been 0:11:54.520 --> 0:11:59.319 through a few, um, usual shows our tough is um 0:11:59.320 --> 0:12:02.720 not just you know, physically, but mentally to be able 0:12:02.760 --> 0:12:05.560 to come back and lose your spot in the starting 0:12:05.640 --> 0:12:07.520 line up and you know, having to come up the 0:12:07.559 --> 0:12:10.280 bench and adjust, um. You know, he just shows you 0:12:10.280 --> 0:12:12.720 that he's in for the right reasons, which used to win. 0:12:12.920 --> 0:12:15.560 And that's what we need about to be on the 0:12:15.600 --> 0:12:18.520 same page, no matter what was, you know, playing or 0:12:18.559 --> 0:12:21.280 not or we just need that about to be bought 0:12:21.320 --> 0:12:24.400 in praise. Joel is playing in his third consecutive MVP 0:12:24.600 --> 0:12:26.800 caliber season. What's it been like to share all three 0:12:26.840 --> 0:12:36.559 of those with him? Call? Nah? Uh? Joel is going Joe, Well, 0:12:36.679 --> 0:12:39.880 I mean it's funny to y'a all the time. I 0:12:40.000 --> 0:12:42.480 try to take it for granted because some of the 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:45.240 things that he does on the basketball court or you know, 0:12:45.400 --> 0:12:47.720 I've never seen before. And for him to do it 0:12:47.720 --> 0:12:49.600 at his size and his speed and do it at 0:12:49.640 --> 0:12:51.960 the high level that he does that every single night. Um, 0:12:52.000 --> 0:12:54.320 it's remarkable and we're gonna need him. And like he said, 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:56.200 you know when the keys to this year is just 0:12:56.240 --> 0:12:59.240 staying healthy him everybody. You know, if you can stay healthy, 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:00.880 I feel like this team has a really good chance 0:13:00.920 --> 0:13:03.720 in skys limit. Follow up on the milestone, Joel, how 0:13:03.840 --> 0:13:06.560 how impressive do you think it is that you you 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:11.319 edged Ai who was obviously a ball dominant garden scorer. Um, 0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:15.760 it's great, Um, you know, just like you said, Um, 0:13:16.000 --> 0:13:20.000 I'm extremely lucky. Um. But then again, I put in 0:13:20.040 --> 0:13:23.160 a lot of water to be, you know, and to 0:13:23.320 --> 0:13:26.520 be able to put myself in those positions no matter 0:13:26.600 --> 0:13:29.000 what it is on the floor, to be able to 0:13:29.280 --> 0:13:33.839 make something happen. Uh, streaming lucky. But then again I 0:13:33.880 --> 0:13:37.680 also put in the war so I'm just playing. Uh 0:13:37.720 --> 0:13:41.400 he contributes to winning. Uh, you know, you know, just playing. 0:13:41.800 --> 0:13:43.959 It doesn't matter how much you score, you know, as 0:13:43.960 --> 0:13:46.800 long as you win, that's what matters is giving you 0:13:46.840 --> 0:13:48.400 a lot some good minutes off the bench. It's what 0:13:48.480 --> 0:13:50.719 do you make of his play for you guys, I mean, 0:13:50.800 --> 0:13:53.400 he's doing what we need him to do. Um, you know, 0:13:53.520 --> 0:13:57.640 playing hard, you know, being actively offensively and defensively, offensively, 0:13:57.679 --> 0:14:02.240 setting screens, getting a supper sis fancy. We sure to 0:14:02.280 --> 0:14:07.280 be as as as aggressive as possible. Uh, obviously got 0:14:07.280 --> 0:14:13.120 a you know, stop falling, stop being a hacker. But 0:14:13.120 --> 0:14:18.040 but no, but he's been you can see the last 0:14:18.080 --> 0:14:20.360 few games. He's one of the reasons why you know, 0:14:20.440 --> 0:14:23.160 we've been able to you know, get this lease on 0:14:23.400 --> 0:14:27.720 and keep them. Joel very complimentary there of both of 0:14:27.720 --> 0:14:30.680 his teammates from that twenty twenty draft class in Tyrese 0:14:30.760 --> 0:14:33.360 Maxie and Paul Reid, who of course gave some big 0:14:33.400 --> 0:14:37.840 minutes a last night, Matt. Any any thoughts on that 0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:42.400 little exchange. Uh, Tyrese not caring in Joel voice, it 0:14:42.480 --> 0:14:45.120 was funny. I mean, to further paint the picture, there 0:14:45.120 --> 0:14:49.040 were like thirty people gathered around Joel, Embiid and James 0:14:49.120 --> 0:14:53.200 are in Tyrese Maxie at the lockers, in the locker room. 0:14:53.720 --> 0:14:56.640 Sometimes they're at the podium like like you said, and 0:14:56.680 --> 0:14:59.360 then throughout because most of the are a lot of 0:14:59.400 --> 0:15:03.640 the questions the end, we're geared towards and bad. Maxie 0:15:03.800 --> 0:15:07.600 was kind of regretting and vocally expressing that he it 0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:10.680 was a bad idea to do a combined media session 0:15:10.880 --> 0:15:13.640 with MBID because then he got, you know, caught up 0:15:13.640 --> 0:15:16.320 in it for maybe longer than it would have been 0:15:16.320 --> 0:15:20.560 if they were going individually. But I wanted to add 0:15:20.600 --> 0:15:23.560 that it seemed like in the arena when they showed 0:15:23.600 --> 0:15:26.200 when they made the announcement about Joel hitting ten thousand 0:15:26.280 --> 0:15:30.120 points that during timeouts the team is locked in on 0:15:30.400 --> 0:15:33.840 what the coaches are saying, but sometimes they pay a 0:15:33.840 --> 0:15:37.240 little extra attention to those types of announcements. And even 0:15:37.240 --> 0:15:41.600 the staff everyone was looking at the video board and 0:15:42.440 --> 0:15:46.320 congratulating MBAID, and they looked to be locked in on 0:15:46.360 --> 0:15:50.120 that like it was. Obviously it's an impressive thing to reach, 0:15:50.160 --> 0:15:52.920 and I think everybody stopped for a minute and really 0:15:53.480 --> 0:15:57.200 took in what that meant to do to hit ten 0:15:57.240 --> 0:16:00.320 thousand in five fewer games than Al and I person 0:16:00.400 --> 0:16:02.680 and really what Joe ell Embiad has done to this 0:16:02.720 --> 0:16:04.600 point in his career, and he's still got a lot 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:08.360 of career to go. But it was something where everyone 0:16:08.400 --> 0:16:10.400 seemed to really soak it in. I'm sure you felt 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:13.560 kind of the same way. Yeah, it was. It was awesome, 0:16:13.680 --> 0:16:16.800 and it always cool to see the teammates embracing one another. 0:16:16.800 --> 0:16:19.040 There's been no shortage of that all season long with 0:16:19.080 --> 0:16:22.000 this crew. Looking ahead, Matt Murphy is going to be 0:16:22.040 --> 0:16:24.600 on the ground at All Star this weekend, and I 0:16:24.680 --> 0:16:26.720 know we've talked to talk about Joe all embead on 0:16:26.360 --> 0:16:29.520 this episode already, but I want to hear a little 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:31.960 bit about Mac McClung. Matt Murphy of course wrote an 0:16:31.960 --> 0:16:34.840 awesome feature on sixers dot com about Mac McClung, the 0:16:34.840 --> 0:16:38.920 Sixers new two way signee. He will also be participating, well, 0:16:38.920 --> 0:16:41.480 he'll be participating in a variety of events this weekend, 0:16:41.680 --> 0:16:43.880 but headlined of course by the dump contest. Matt, what 0:16:43.920 --> 0:16:47.280 can you tell the squad about Mac McClung. I've got 0:16:47.320 --> 0:16:51.400 some Mac McClung notes for sure. Before I get to them, 0:16:51.560 --> 0:16:54.960 I did want to mention a question from b Walds 0:16:55.000 --> 0:16:59.840 who said thoughts on Pj's defensive work. And I've mentioned 0:17:00.040 --> 0:17:04.840 the Nuggets game already that Joel Embiid, you know, was 0:17:04.880 --> 0:17:07.600 the standout player and that one against Yoki and the 0:17:07.680 --> 0:17:10.879 Nuggets in that afternoon game to win seven straight at 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:14.119 the time. But PJ. Tucker and the adjustment that the 0:17:14.160 --> 0:17:17.880 coaching staff made and him guarding Yokich on some critical plays, 0:17:18.000 --> 0:17:20.680 especially in the second half. That's the game I think 0:17:20.680 --> 0:17:22.879 you point to from the first half with PJ. Tucker 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:25.119 and the work that he's done defensively. And then throughout 0:17:25.160 --> 0:17:28.680 the season we have heard his teammates and his coaches 0:17:28.720 --> 0:17:31.399 and his head coach, Doc Rivers talk about just his 0:17:31.520 --> 0:17:33.920 voice and how important it is to this defense. There's 0:17:33.960 --> 0:17:35.840 been some micd up clips, there's been all this stuff 0:17:35.840 --> 0:17:39.000 out there. He is really just like the captain of 0:17:39.040 --> 0:17:41.680 this defense, and he knows where everyone should be and 0:17:41.800 --> 0:17:45.240 he tells them and I think it's maybe something that 0:17:45.280 --> 0:17:49.520 can't be talked about enough. But yes, All Star Weekend 0:17:49.560 --> 0:17:54.000 will not only feature obviously Joel Embiad was voted in. 0:17:54.520 --> 0:17:58.240 James Harden unfortunately was not voted in as a starter 0:17:58.400 --> 0:18:01.399 or reserve. The rosters kind of still in flux, but 0:18:02.200 --> 0:18:05.960 at this point as we talk on Thursday morning, but 0:18:06.320 --> 0:18:09.800 it will also feature a new sixer who is Mac McClung. 0:18:10.480 --> 0:18:14.600 He was signed to a two way deal recently and 0:18:14.920 --> 0:18:17.000 he was playing with the Bluecoats all season. It's his 0:18:17.040 --> 0:18:21.359 second professional season. He's a Gate City, a proud Gate City, 0:18:21.440 --> 0:18:25.680 Virginia native, and he's been having a big time season 0:18:26.080 --> 0:18:29.640 for the Bluecoats. Their season was split between the Showcase Cup. 0:18:29.640 --> 0:18:32.119 If anyone has any specific questions about Mac or what 0:18:32.200 --> 0:18:34.960 I've seen, please click on my icon and send me 0:18:35.000 --> 0:18:37.680 a message or a tweet. But the G League season 0:18:37.720 --> 0:18:40.640 being the Showcase Cup and the regular season, his three 0:18:40.640 --> 0:18:42.840 point shooting is probably the thing that stands out to 0:18:42.880 --> 0:18:45.800 me the most. Since the regular season has started, he's 0:18:45.840 --> 0:18:50.840 thirty nine for seventy eight in eighteen games, eighteen regular 0:18:50.880 --> 0:18:54.120 season games, fifty percent from three point range. He's known 0:18:54.160 --> 0:18:57.159 as a big time scorer. He's known as someone with highlight, 0:18:57.200 --> 0:19:00.679 real dunks, and he's been on people's radar because of 0:19:00.760 --> 0:19:03.880 YouTube and in these mixtapes that have been out there 0:19:03.960 --> 0:19:06.199 since he was a high school player. But now the 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:10.160 shooting is there. He is just flat out someone who's 0:19:10.160 --> 0:19:13.200 going to hustle and try to help the Bluecoats win games. 0:19:13.240 --> 0:19:18.000 They almost scored over the weekend, or between Saturday and 0:19:18.040 --> 0:19:20.960 Monday as we're talking now, they almost scored three hundred 0:19:21.000 --> 0:19:24.080 points in two wins, and they're up like twenty points 0:19:24.160 --> 0:19:26.800 late in the second win and he dove on the 0:19:26.880 --> 0:19:29.560 sideline to save the ball with four minutes left in 0:19:29.600 --> 0:19:32.440 the game, up by twenty. They scored two hundred and 0:19:32.480 --> 0:19:36.800 ninety six points in these two games, absolutely dominated. Absolutely 0:19:36.880 --> 0:19:38.879 did not have to dive and save a ball. But 0:19:38.920 --> 0:19:41.320 I think when he puts that Sixers uniform on and 0:19:41.600 --> 0:19:43.520 he gets a chance to make his debut in front 0:19:43.520 --> 0:19:46.040 of Sixers fans, they're going to see that type of 0:19:46.359 --> 0:19:50.120 grit and determination from Mac McClung. And first we'll see 0:19:50.119 --> 0:19:53.680 it on the national stage that is NBA All Star Weekend. 0:19:53.720 --> 0:19:55.960 He's got an event every day. He's got the Rising 0:19:56.000 --> 0:19:59.120 Stars Game on Friday night, he's got the Dunk Contest 0:19:59.160 --> 0:20:01.320 on Saturday night, and the G League All Star Game 0:20:01.720 --> 0:20:05.080 also known as the Next Up Game on Sunday afternoon. 0:20:05.200 --> 0:20:07.840 So you'll see a lot of Mac McClung. He has 0:20:07.880 --> 0:20:11.040 a history of dunk contests. He actually went back and 0:20:11.080 --> 0:20:14.159 forth as a high school player against Kevin Porter junior 0:20:14.240 --> 0:20:17.040 now of the Houston Rockets, and they did two or 0:20:17.080 --> 0:20:20.240 three dunk contests where they were finalists and McClung won 0:20:20.320 --> 0:20:23.840 two out of his three before even entering college. And 0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:25.720 there's a couple of notable things he did in high 0:20:25.760 --> 0:20:27.199 school that I want to get to as well. But 0:20:27.320 --> 0:20:30.240 I feel like I went pretty deep there on McClung. 0:20:30.359 --> 0:20:32.560 You asked for it, Lauren, you gave me the runway. 0:20:32.840 --> 0:20:34.880 I will sort and see if anyone has any additional 0:20:34.960 --> 0:20:39.120 questions before getting to those records he broke in high school. 0:20:39.160 --> 0:20:43.000 But he's a really fun player. He's six foot two 0:20:43.280 --> 0:20:46.320 and he'll be sporting a Sixers jersey at these events, 0:20:46.359 --> 0:20:49.399 the dunk contest, all of it. He's absolutely going to 0:20:49.400 --> 0:20:51.480 put on a show. He does it every game in 0:20:51.560 --> 0:20:54.720 layup lines and with his in game dunks. But it 0:20:54.760 --> 0:20:57.480 will be good to see him. Congratulations to him the 0:20:57.480 --> 0:21:00.920 twenty ninth G League call up of the season. So far, 0:21:01.359 --> 0:21:04.520 he's played two NBA games, one for the Bulls one 0:21:04.640 --> 0:21:07.520 for the Lakers last year. Now it's about trying to stick. 0:21:07.600 --> 0:21:10.520 These guys fight through the grind of the G League 0:21:10.560 --> 0:21:14.520