The Philadelphia 76ers went away as winners on opening night with a 113-107 victory over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday and can thank the bank for that. The starting unit struggled when they started solving problems, while working through a new system, and the bank came in and offered a lift.
Shake Milton won 19 points, also playing an impeccable defense against Wizards stars Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, Furkan Korkmaz had 11, Tyrese Maxey had six and Dwight Howard had 10 rebounds. Sixers needed all this to win this game, as the newcomers outside of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons fought a little.
“There will be games that the original unit will play great,” Korkmaz said Thursday after training. “Then the second unit will play a little badly. Yesterday (Wednesday), I think the second unit did a great job. “
The second unit helped the Sixers gain a 50-37 lead at the end of the second quarter, before the starters returned and the Wizards continued a great race to effectively take the lead at the break. This was followed by the third quarter in Philadelphia, where the rookies could not gather a bucket until the 6:04 mark in the third quarter.
Coach Doc Rivers put the bench back there and helped bring the team back into it a bit and then helped the floor space for Embiid to dominate the stretch.
“In the first half, we got a big lead,” Korkmaz added. “I think in the game, I got 12 points in the first half, but it was a game, I think, at the end of the day the win is a win, but I think the second unit did a great job.”
For Simmons, he was happy to see his teammates step in at an important time. To get where they want to go, they will need all the team members to step up and contribute. They can’t just be beginners every night, so this is a good sign for them as a group.
“It’s huge,” Simmons said of the bank. “It’s great to see guys coming in, performing songs and getting to our stuff. Then, on the defensive side, stop and be proud of our matches, defensively. Everyone should be on the same page, especially if it’s the other way around. Our second group fails, the boys have to step up. This is what this team is built on. “
Shows like Wednesday also help ease pressure on starters. On nights when they simply will not have it as they did in it, the bank can come in and produce. The team has had bank fights in the past, but this is a different team right now. The bank can also push starters to get better performance.
“No pressure, it’s more, it feeds us,” Simmons concluded. “We want to start. When we see them kill him and it’s time to go back, we want to do the same and this is the basketball championship. Everyone has to play their part and do it. “
Philadelphia will look to continue to grow as a team when it takes the New York Knicks on the road on Saturday.