The Philadelphia 76ers traveled to Washington, DC, for the second half of their first back-to-back of the season, facing a 1-2 Wizards squad.
Washington is a team full of young players, with a sprinkle of veterans who arrived mostly as salary dumps. They are fighting to stay competitive and focusing on developing their young talent early this season.
With Joel Embiid returning to the lineup after missing last night’s game against the Magic, the team made an assertive effort to get him involved in the offense early. He scored eight points in the first six minutes of the game. The Wizards' starting center, Alex Sarr, was not intimidated by the challenge of playing against Embiid, scoring 13 points and pulling down six rebounds in the first quarter. Sarr’s first-quarter performance sparked the Wizards to 40 first-quarter points, with the home team getting second-chance points and wide-open, easy shots.
Trendon Watford made his season debut on Tuesday night and made an immediate impact on the floor. His ability to play with pace and ball-handling skills were on display throughout the game. Watford was dishing dimes to some of his teammates and finding a couple of open guys, who ended up getting fouled and shooting free throws.
The Sixers’ defense in the first half was virtually non-existent, giving up 72 points and allowing Washington to shoot 54 percent overall. The home team wasn’t much better, giving up 68 first-half points to Philly.
The Wizards came out of halftime still on fire, making anything they threw up to the basket. Their shooting, combined with a cold streak from Philly, pushed the Sixers to their largest deficit of the season at 19 points. Outside of being bailed out by Embiid at the end of possessions, the offense seemed stagnant, an outlier in the first four games.
Just when you thought the game was over for the Sixers, they made a tremendous push in the fourth quarter, led by Tyrese Maxey and Quentin Grimes. Grimes’ play in the fourth quarter, particularly his two-way play, stood out. He guarded well, got steals and defections to help give his team a chance late in the fourth. With a late three-pointer to tie by Grimes and an excellent block by Adem Bona, the Sixers forced overtime at 126.
On the second night of a back-to-back game and fighting back to force overtime, just when you thought the Sixers hit a wall, they broke through for good. After going down 131-126 in overtime, they turned it around and got a 139-134 comeback victory against the Wizards.
Tyrese Maxey (39 points and 10 assists), Joel Embiid (25 points, seven rebounds, five assists), and Quentin Grimes (23 points and seven rebounds) led the way for Philly. Washington was paced by 31 points and 11 rebounds from Alex Sarr.
Through four games, the Sixers have shown a different energy and attitude. They fight until the buzzer reaches zero, playing with a specific standard, which Maxey emphasized they would play with at the team’s media day and multiple times since.
The Sixers will next return home for a matchup against the Boston Celtics on Halloween this Friday, Oct. 31. After the loss they suffered on their home court, the Celtics will undoubtedly be looking for some revenge on All Hallows Eve.
