Robert Covington Explains Critical Mentality 76ers’ Reserves Must Have

Robert Covington lays out the mentality blueprint that 76ers reserves must possess.

The Philadelphia 76ers are finding comfort in Nick Nurse’s system, but the rotation itself is still a work in progress. That’s precisely the reason why Robert Covington’s role has been inconsistent thus far.

Since getting traded to the Sixers from the Los Angeles Clippers, Covington’s minutes have fluctuated. At times, he might check in for well over 20 minutes. Then, recently, he picked up a DNP.

Excluding his debut matchup with the Sixers, Covington has appeared in 17 games for Philadelphia, collecting three starts. During that stretch, he averaged 17.8 minutes per game. At first, Covington was one of Nick Nurse’s go-to reserves, but with the return of Kelly Oubre and the recent uptick in minutes for Marcus Morris, Covington spent more time on the bench this past week.

In Philadelphia’s second matchup against the Washington Wizards, which took place last Wednesday, Covington checked in for just four minutes. Last Friday, he didn’t see the court at all during the matchup against Atlanta.

When the Sixers and the Wizards met for a third outing on Monday night, Covington checked into the game for the first time at the beginning of the second quarter. Once again, he was earning primary rotational minutes in the blowout win over the Wizards.

In total, Covington appeared on the court for 14 minutes. It wasn’t a long shift, but more than half of those minutes came outside of garbage time. Going from having just four minutes of action across two games to playing a key reserve role on Monday, Covington explained that a specific mindset is everything for a player who doesn’t have guaranteed minutes on a nightly basis.

“You got to be prepared, you got to be a pro, and every time you step on the court, your name’s called, you gotta be prepared,” Covington explained on Monday. “That's it.”

Covington is no stranger to seeing his minutes go up and down throughout the course of a season. With the Clippers last year, he appeared in just 48 games, averaging 16 minutes when he did play. On six different occasions throughout the 2022-2023 season, Covington missed consecutive games while active with the Clippers.

“At the end of the day, I went through the stuff that I went through in LA,” Covington explained. “Everybody ask the same question: ‘How do I stay ready?’ Its a mental thing.”

Covington acknowledged his understanding that the Sixers are a “deep team,” that possess a handful of usable players beyond the starting five and the few go-to reserves. With Nurse undecided on his everyday lineup, Covington is simply entering every game with the same mentality.

“Whatever happens, you just stay ready,” he concluded.