Player Observations After Sixers Take Down Spurs at Home

The Philadelphia 76ers started the new year off on the right foot. When they took the floor on Monday to host the Houston Rockets for their first game of 2022, the Sixers were already in the midst of a three-game win streak with victories over the Washington Wizards, Toronto Raptors, and the Brooklyn Nets.

Although the shorthanded and rebuilding Houston Rockets played the Sixers well in the first half of their Monday night matchup, the 76ers took care of their home court and found a way to dominate in the second half and pick up their fourth-straight win.

Following Monday's game, the Sixers hit the road once again for a quick trip down south. Similar to the Houston matchup, the Sixers faced another rebuilding franchise with a long injury report in the Orlando Magic. However, unlike the Rockets game, the Magic gave the Sixers a run for their money.

As Sixers head coach Doc Rivers made clear last week, the team isn't worried about how bad they beat a team. Instead, they focused solely on whether they win the game or not. So, even though Wednesday's game was a little close for comfort late in the fourth quarter, the Sixers managed to pull away when it mattered most and came out with a ten-point victory, picking up their fifth-straight win.

The Sixers returned home on Friday night to wrap up their week with a game against the San Antonio Spurs. Considering the Spurs, like many teams, have been battling a ton of setbacks, the Sixers were heavily favored in Friday's matchup.

In the first quarter of action, the Sixers put their foot on the gas and wouldn't let up as they scored nearly 40 points while holding San Antonio to under 20. While the Spurs battled back in the second quarter, the 76ers were in good shape as they went into halftime with a 71-53 lead.

San Antonio had a much better second-half performance, but it was too little too late for them to get out in front and pull off an upset in South Philly. Therefore, when the game ended, the Sixers picked up their sixth-straight win by taking down the Spurs 119-110. With that win, the Sixers advance to 22-16 on the year.

76ers vs. Spurs Player Observations

How did the Sixers perform individually against the Spurs on Friday night?

Matisse Thybulle

The third-year defensive standout returned to the court after missing the last couple of games in the health and safety protocol. Typically, when guys return from COVID-related absences, they look rusty in their first game back. That wasn’t the case for Thybulle, though. Per usual he flashed on defense. But it was Thybulle’s offensive performance that impressed the most. In 33 minutes, he was a perfect 5-5 from the field and drained his lone three-pointer. In total, he wrapped up the night with 12 points. 

Tobias Harris

The last time Tobias Harris played in front of the Philly crowd, he engaged in a back and forth spat with fans as he struggled from the field. Wednesday night’s game in Orlando was a bounce-back performance for him but he had himself another solid night in South Philly on Friday. From the field, he was efficient as he knocked down nine of his 12 shots. He also went 5-6 from the free throw line, scoring 23 points. He was one of three players to notch over 20 points against the Spurs.

Joel Embiid

Once again, Embiid led the Sixers in scoring with a game-high of 31 points. Not only did he have a handful of highlight dunks and passes, but Embiid did a solid job getting to the free throw line as usual as he earned 15 attempts at the line. While Embiid’s typically a more reliable free throw shooter, he still drained 11 of his attempts. He nearly had a triple double as he collected 12 rebounds and racked up seven assists.

Furkan Korkmaz

Lately, Korkmaz has climbed out of his slump with a pair of solid performances. He made some nice plays on Friday but it wasn’t necessarily a great game for the Turkish veteran. In 33 minutes, Korkmaz shot 3-11 from the field. From three, he knocked down just one of his six shots. Korkmaz left Friday’s game with just seven points. He was the only starter that failed to notch double digits.

Seth Curry

The veteran guard was red-hot from the floor, which is nothing new. In the first half, Curry drained 80-percent of his shots from the field for 18 points. While he had a quieter second half, Curry still had himself a stellar performance as he wrapped up the game with 23 points in 36 minutes.

Danny Green

Going into the game, Green was questionable with calf soreness. Although he was cleared, Doc Rivers mentioned that Green was going to have a minutes restriction. He played a little less than 15 minutes on Friday and he didn’t create much of an offensive impact off the bench. On Wednesday night, Green didn’t attempt a shot until the fourth quarter. On Friday, his first pair of attempts didn’t come until the third quarter. Overall, he finished the night 2-4 from the field for six points.

Georges Niang

Lately, Niang’s been quiet but he’s still giving the Sixers solid minutes even when he’s not lighting it up from beyond the arc. He wrapped up the night by scoring five points off of four shots. Typically, Niang needs to have a bigger impact off the bench, but the Sixers’ starting lineup took care of business on Friday. Therefore, Niang’s quiet night didn’t affect his team negatively.

Charlie Brown Jr.

The young guard made his Sixers debut against the Spurs. For a guy who hasn’t been with the team for long, Brown made some nice plays and had himself an And-1 right after he checked in for the first time. Brown’s unlikely to win himself another contract once his ten days are up, but he gave the Sixers some promising minutes on Friday.

Andre Drummond

The veteran big man has had much better nights. Off the bench, Drummond contributed to five points, six rebounds and two assists. While his production was decent for his limited amount of playing time, leading the team with four turnovers in under 14 minutes isn’t exactly ideal. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.