Jared McCain continued his streak of scoring at least 20 points. The Sixers blew a 19-point first-half lead against the short-handed Miami Heat. Joel Embiid won't play with force. Philadelphia looks totally lost right now.
Here's what I saw.
- Paul George had an excellent first quarter. When Philadelphia needed someone to get the offense going out of the gate, George was up to the task. Unlike in Orlando when the Sixers came out with chemistry between George and Joel Embiid in the pick-and-roll, the big guy was the mechanism leveraging his tools to create open shots for his new teammate. On Philadelphia's first possession of the game, Embiid drew shading from helpers and kicked to George for an open three.
George got rolling after that, lacing a baseline jumper to start the game with a quick five points on 2-for-3 shooting. Perhaps the most significant factor in his struggles against the Magic was that George could not create any advantages off the dribble. He was stuck in mud, unable to create space for his jumper or get his shoulders around his defender to crack the paint. George had very little issue finding those angles in the first quarter, attacking for a couple of finishes at the cup or the foul on the effort.
- Listed as 'doubtful' with an illness leading up to the game, Embiid was not applying himself as a scorer. Not that he often had the chance to, Miami sending bodies at him every time he put the ball on the floor in space. But, Embiid was much more secure with the ball in the halfcourt. The Sixers left a handful of buckets on the board throughout this game purely by missing open shots for which Embiid set them up. He got flustered by pressure in the short corner from time to time, a pass out of the swarm getting picked off as Miami made its run in the third quarter. But, this game did not do Embiid justice in the box score. He didn't force ill-advised shots or put the ball on the deck in spots where there was no space to drive. Embiid took what Miami was showing and used it to his advantage when possible. The Sixers shooting 10-for-41 from three simply isn't going to cut it.
- A fifth straight game with at least 20 points for McCain. He had some good defensive moments, too. After getting stuck on a screen and switching onto Kevin Love, McCain was strong enough to front and deny the veteran big in the post. Duncan Robinson had his eyes focused on feeding the mismatch, but McCain shut it down. The possession ended in a blocked three from Robinson, all because McCain was able to hold his own. Of other note, McCain went from really struggling at the rim over his first eight or so games to finding all kinds of angles to finish at the hoop. Really quick, impressive progression from him.
- McCain telegraphed a few passes to Embiid early in this game, underestimating the helper rushing the big guy on his blind side or Adebayo pressing up to deny the ball. Those are mistakes you expect a rookie to make, even if McCain is playing above the curve for his age. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, those errant passes resulted in open-floor turnovers.
- Thought Embiid's body language on those McCain passes that resulted in turnovers was pretty poor. Pick the rookie up and help him learn on the fly.
- Speaking of Embiid, nothing matters if he doesn't start to get more aggressive with the ball in his hands. I don't think he's playing disinterested, to be clear. But, the way he's playing - the timidness with which he functions on offense - gives off disinterest to the viewer. If you don't have the angle to attack the basket, it's a different story. But, he has to play with more power and intention.
- The difference between decent teams, like the Heat, and the Sixers, right now, is cohesion. One team knows all of its defensive rotations, who to tag and when to tag them. The other can't put together four quarters of competent offense. Embiid operating at a fraction of his powers is only one aspect of the issue. But, just watch the difference in function. The Sixers have no clue what their identity is or how to begin to get back on track when they face adversity.
- If Eric Gordon is not making threes, get him out. He's not helping the cause.
- You cannot possibly justify sitting Guerschon Yabusele until you're down double digits in the third quarter. Especially with Miami's size. He's earned a solidified spot in the rotation. Yabusele should've been in the mix far earlier in this game.
The Sixers (2-11) will visit the Memphis Grizzlies (8-6) on Wednesday. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m., Eastern time. You can watch the game on NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus.
