Sixers lead series 2-1
I - BKN 111; PHI 102
II - PHI 145; BKN 123
III - PHI 131; BKN 115
GAME FOUR
Philadelphia 76ers
vs.
Brooklyn Nets
FROM
Flatbush Avenue
Joel Embiid or not, we're starting to see the Philly team that won 51 regular season games and entered the playoffs as the Eastern Conference third seed.
It's that simple.
Ben Simmons made Jared Dudley eat his words, showing just how average he can be by leading the floor with 31 points and a game high nine assists. Meanwhile, Dudley failed to score a single point in 17 minutes of play. The Nets also had no answer for Tobias Harris whom scored 29 points and secured a game-high 16 rebounds, nor JJ Redick who added another 26 points. All three Sixers exceeded thirty minutes of play. In a curious distribution of playing time, only D'Angelo Russell managed thirty minutes of play for the Nets.
That said, Coach Atkinson is receiving some criticisms for the way he negotiated game three. However, I'm not going there - not at all. That would be completely taking this whole season and what he and the team have achieved to date completely out of context.
Everything else, though, is fair game.
For instance ...
GM3 #Nets put up 39 shots from three, missed 31 of them.— B'klynTrolleyBlogger (@BTB_MikeII) April 19, 2019
For a team that largely predicates its game on rebounding, spreading the floor, pick-and-roll, and taking three-point shots, Thursday's game was about as confounding as it gets.
On the eve of game one, I said this:
Through the first three regular season games versus Philly, Joe Harris averaged just 11.3 ppg., but was a hawk-eye 6 for 12 (50%) from three point land. The Nets fourth game against Philly is perhaps the first time Joe Harris exerts himself, posting a team high 22 points and shooting 4/6 from beyond the arc. The problem is the Nets will require from him more than just four attempts (3-pointers) per game. In fact "his here today gone tomorrow" act must end post haste if the Nets are to hang around through an extended series against the Sixers. What I ask for is a little more consistency; playing up to his averages on a nightly basis. Granted, he only averaged 13.7 ppg for the season. Make no mistake; I'm not picking on Joe. But we all know the impact a sharpshooting Harris can have on any given game. In fact, when Joe Harris shines hot the rest of the Nets radiate brilliance.
Therefore I say again: Joe Harris must impact these next several games. Because so far he's done quite the opposite. He played up to his career average with 13 points and shooting 3/4 form behind the arc in game one's opening win. But he's been missing ever since. Harris scored just four points and was 0/2 from three range in game two, and scored eight but was 0/4 from the arc in game three. That's 0/6 from three range with just twelve points over his last two games.
Cycling back to my Tweet, Brooklyn shot 20.5% from beyond the arc, and just 41.1% from the field. In game two, Philly shot a stellar 56.1% from the field, then followed up shooting 48.4% from the field, and 40.7% (11/27) from three range on Thursday. None of this even begins to describe the damage they're causing in the paint.
And on the glass ...
REBOUNDS
- GM1 - Nets 45; Sixers 50 (-5)
- GM2 - Nets 32; Sixers 49 (-17)
- GM3 - Nets 43; Sixers 54 (-9)
ASSISTS
- GM1 - Nets 15; Sixers 20 (Russell four assists)
- GM2 - Nets 20; Sixers 29 (Russell two assists)
- GM3 - Nets 12; Sixers 26 (Russell three assists)
Despair not, folks. The Nets are a resilient bunch. They've given us many reasons over the course of the season, and within this series, to believe they can bounce back and win game four at Barclays Center. I'm particularly interested to see what adjustments Coach Atkinson has in store.
But if game three proved anything, it's that Flatbush is behind him, and this team 100%.
But if game three proved anything, it's that Flatbush is behind him, and this team 100%.
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