76ers vs. Cavs: Tyrese Maxey's great moments covered up in blowout loss
12/21/2024 10:18 PM
The Philadelphia 76ers (9-17) squared off with the Cleveland Cavaliers (25-4) on the second night of a back-to-back. As they stuck to their plan of resting Joel Embiid on back-to-backs, the Sixers got predictably steamrolled by the Cavs. Final score: 126-99.
After the 76ers beat the Charlotte Hornets for the fourth time this season, they traveled west to face the team with the best record in the NBA. Any hope of picking up a victory was made tougher with Joel Embiid and Jared McCain out of the lineup. A win against the mostly healthy Cavs would have made for one of the best wins of the season — but it wasn't in the works.
Embiid heads back to the sideline, George remains in the lineup
Embiid appreciates Paul George’s support as he navigates injury troubles and surely wanted to play again tonight. But the 76ers still preferred to rest him in this game, the latest matchup on the second night of a back-to-back scheduled in a different region of the country. Perhaps the NBA will stop doing that in the future but it's not worth holding your breath over. Whatever the case, the Sixers clearly aren't ready to let Embiid play in games on consecutive days yet.
George, on the other hand, stayed in the starting lineup despite being listed as questionable with a left knee impingement. He also seemed like a candidate to play just one leg of back-to-backs but he ended up playing in this one.
The 76ers often spaced the floor along the baseline for PG and got him the ball at the nail after setting a screen for Tyrese Maxey, allowing him to go to work with a mismatch. He hit a few smooth jumpers, including one pull-up from the baseline that sent former Sixer Georges Niang to the floor. The George on George(s) crime will be on highlight reels for years to come.
— Sports Vids (@magicvibesio) December 22, 2024
The Cavs almost got their own ankle-breaking bucket courtesy of Donovan Mitchell, though he did step on his defender’s foot, so it doesn't really count.
George’s shooting fell off after a hot start. His only shot in the paint was a jumper just below the left elbow (that he made). He shot 4-12 from the field in his 27 minutes, recording three turnovers to one assist to go along with his 11 points. All the warts in his game were on display in this one.
It’s hard to tell how much this poor showing is a result of playing both ends of a back-to-back. George has had performances like this previously with ample rest. It’s something the 76ers cannot afford regardless of Embiid’s playing status.
Maxey can’t save the day singlehandedly
Maxey scored the first eight points for the Sixers, knifing through the Cavs’ defense and draining a pair of threes to begin his night. His shooting inside the arc, however, left a lot to be desired. Once again, Maxey went on awesome individual runs but couldn't kickstart the entire offense. He ended the night with 27 points and three assists on 8-22 shooting from the field, including 5-10 from deep.
As an off-ball threat, Maxey is fantastic — arguably as good as any guard not named Stephen Curry. He’s a spectacular catch-and-shoot artist with nearly unmatched foot speed — and he’s shown growth as a ball-handler and finisher at the hoop over the last year and change. That's the type of player who can twist defenses into knots as he flies around screens to set him up for threes.
But the Sixers lack the playmaking infrastructure to make that happen when Embiid sits. Maxey’s step-through moves, off-the-dribble shooting footwork and finishing through contact show how he’s improved over the years and he managed to get himself back on track in the second half. However, he’s not the type of otherworldly playmaker who can create offense for everyone else. The main problem is that the Sixers need him to command the ball like one. His poor shooting inside the arc was offset in part by his free-throw volume (6-8 from the stripe).
The Sixers not named Maxey or George, of course, couldn't do much to propel the offense. They drove into the paint past the Cavs’ shoddy perimeter defense, sinking a few acrobatic shots and getting to the foul line but otherwise didn't have much to offer inside the arc. No one else on Philly’s side got up a high volume of threes, though almost everyone who shot one made one.
A tough task on defense
The 76ers have played decently on defense this season, coming into this matchup in Cleveland just outside the top 10 in defensive rating. The Cavs’ offense was a huge litmus test for them on both sides of the ball. Could the Sixers slow up a high-powered offense and get enough from their own to steal a win?
Nope.
The Cavs began this game sloppily. They shot 2-8 and committed four turnovers in a span of roughly two minutes, looking way out of sorts on the end of the floor where they have been one of the absolute best in basketball. They started to look more like themselves once they got out in transition, splashing open threes and capping off a 14-2 run with a slam from Mitchell that gave them the lead.
Darius Garland was simply too quick to stay in front of, which collapsed the Sixers defense and allowed the Cavs’ collection of sharpshooters to launch. It also opened up Jarrett Allen on the roll to attack however he saw fit. Their volume fueled the type of offense that would make bitter basketball "fans" cry about too many 25-foot shots and yearn for more 20-foot shots, for some reason. But their efficiency — 22-43 shooting — was self-explanatory. Garland notching 26 points on 9-11 shooting from the field certainly helped, as did Evan Mobley’s 22 points on 10-14 shooting.
As easy as it is to throw up your hands when a team catches fire from deep and say there isn't anything to be done, it's oftentimes the incorrect reaction. Some hot shooting nights just happen when a team takes the shots they usually do and hits more of them than typical. But when those looks are ones that NBA players can hit extremely frequently — like, say, a catch-and-shoot look without much defensive pressure — it’s not too hard to post a gaudy three-point percentage.
If the Cavs were pushed deep into the shot clock or forced to take a lot of threes off the dribble, their three-point percentage would be rightfully bewildering. But they simply kept the ball moving and put pressure on the Sixers’ defense, leading to very good shots.
Adem Bona got some minutes to end the third quarter and Jeff Dowtin Jr. started the fourth as the Sixers faced a 21-point deficit. That signaled it was time to lick their wounds and prepare for their next game, though George and Maxey did eventually find their way back into the game. It served no purpose.
The 76ers will return home on Monday and face the San Antonio Spurs before embarking on a year-ending road trip.
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