The Sixers will get back to work on Wednesday, holding their first official practice since the All-Star break. A day later, they will look to snap a brutal two-game losing streak when they play host to the underwhelming Atlanta Hawks.
Recent events have not catered to optimism surrounding the Sixers. From Paul George's 25-game suspension to Joel Embiid's right knee flaring up and a few brutal losses following an inactive and disappointing trade deadline, the excitement that was starting to form around this group has waned.
The good news: the Sixers will have every chance to earn people's intrigue again in the weeks ahead, with 28 games left on their schedule and a playoff spot well within reach.
As we do every Wednesday, let's see how the national media feels about the state of the Sixers:
NBA.com: 13 (-1 from last week)
As always, John Schuhmann dives into all sorts of statistical indicators of how a team has performed to date and what it says about their future prospects. But for a moment, a note about how brutal last season was feels appropriate:
"The Sixers have been the league’s second most improved team in regard to winning percentage and have already won six more games than they did last season. They’ve seen the league’s fourth biggest jump in points scored per 100 possessions (+3.8) and its fourth biggest drop in points allowed per 100 possessions (-2.8)." [NBA.com]
While every Sixers fan has the right to be discouraged by what has happened over the last few weeks, it is worth noting how much better all of this is than anything that happened last season, when the Sixers entered expecting to contend for a championship and ended up spending multiple months tanking.
MORE: How would trade deadline have gone without Paul George suspension?
The Athletic: 13 (-1 from last week)
Even for those understandably disillusioned by all things Embiid at this point, there is plenty to be excited about in the present and future on this roster, starting with the backcourt. Law Murray dives into all things Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe:
"Tyrese Maxey didn’t do so well Saturday night in the 3-point shootout, but he was the starting point guard for the champion Stars team on Sunday. Maxey scored seven of his 15 points in the first three minutes of the final game Sunday night to effectively bury the veteran Stripes. Now, the 76ers need Maxey and Edgecombe to lock back in, because they played two of their worst games of the season to back into the All-Star break." [The Athletic]
Both Maxey and Edgecombe have hit walls of late, and it hard to imagine they are not both exhausted. Maxey is handling a workload as heavy as that of any player in the entire NBA, and Edgecombe is in uncharted territory: he has never played a season as long as this one, and he is only about two-thirds of the way done, all while playing big minutes at a faster pace and against stronger competition than ever (literally and figuratively). The Sixers will need both players to find their stellar early-season forms to reach great heights.
SIXERS TRANSCATIONS
• Jabari Walker gets a new standard contract
• Tyrese Martin joins on a two-way contract
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