Nick Nurse's Honest Assessment on Young Sixer's Showing vs Rockets

What did Nick Nurse think of Ricky Council vs the Rockets?

Oct 27, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Philadelphia 76ers Head Coach Nick Nurse signals to his team during the first quarter against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images / Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

One of the breakout youngsters for the Philadelphia 76ers last season was Ricky Council IV, making 32 appearances in the NBA while also spending time with the Delaware Blue Coats in the G-League, doing enough on both levels to land a four-year contact.

While he has managed to get a consistent string of appearances through the opening 17 games of the season, appearing in 14 of them, he had yet to truly receive a good run of game time despite the injuries going around the team.

This was until Wednesday night, when Council took to the court for 26 minutes, coming in during the second quarter and making an immediate impact, recording seven rebounds across that ten-minute period.

Following the game, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse touched on Council's outing against the Rockets, highlighting his work on the glass as well as his work on the offensive end.

"He did a good job, he did what he can do, he can get on the offensive glass, he can shoot that deep kind of wing three as well," said Nurse, "really first great chance for him to play extended minutes and a great effort by him."

Ricky Council IV, who shot a total 3-18 from three-point range in 2024-25 heading into Wednesday night's game, knocked down two triples from the left wing with high degrees of difficulty against the Rockets: pic.twitter.com/Om3zOKz14f

— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 29, 2024

To Nurse's point, Council ended the night with a season-high 12 points, including two makes from beyond the arc, paired with his ten rebounds, earned him the second double-double of his NBA career.

According to the Sixers head coach, Council landed the opportunity due to a lack of another option, yet he was happy to give him the time as it can play a role in furthering his development, something that the coaching staff could have in mind given his four-year contract.

"I just don't really have anyone else over there so I had to put someone in..." said Nurse, "When you're missing people you give somebody an opportunity, and you let them play through mistakes because those guys are still making defensive mistakes and that, but he's playing hard and on the glass, those guys got to learn through some of those things and get a little bit better..."

With Caleb Martin having sat out of Wednesday night's match due to upper back soreness, Saturday night's match in Detroit could provide Council with another opportunity for considerable minutes on the court.