Sixers grades: Joel Embiid imposes his will; Tobias Harris produces another solid effort
Joel Embiid didn’t waste time showing why he’s the reigning MVP and Tyrese Maxey was somewhat unstoppable, at least in the first half.
The 76ers defeated the Denver Nuggets, 126-121, Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center. Here are my grades from the game:
Centers: A
Joel Embiid didn’t waste time showing why he’s the reigning MVP. Nikola Jokić and everyone else had a tough time guarding him. Embiid had 14 points on 6-for-10 shooting — including 2 of 3 three-pointers — along with three rebounds and five assists in the first quarter to set the tempo. But he was messing around a little bit, defensively.
Paul Reed played DeAndre Jordan evenly, which is kind of what you want from him.
Forwards: B
Tobias Harris started the game embracing being a role player — two games after finishing with a career-high 37 points. On this night, he only had one shot attempt in the first quarter. However, Harris did a solid job on the defensive end. He had a block and broke up an alley-oop. And the power forward ended up with 24 points.
Nic Batum was great offensively. His highlight was a three-pointer that people will talk about for a while.
Marcus Morris got into early foul trouble. He had three first-half points while going 3-for-4 from the foul line. He hit a big three-pointer after intermission. The North Philly native played okay.
Furkan Korkmaz didn’t do much in his limited action.
Guards: B-
Tyrese Maxey was somewhat unstoppable in the first half. The Nuggets had a tough time stopping him from getting to his desired spot. Even though Jamal Murray made shots, Maxey did a solid job of providing resistance. Things cooled off after intermission when Maxey shot 2-for-8.
Kelly Oubre was okay. He had some solid hustle plays that led to layups. But his one-on-one defense against Michael Porter Jr. was a struggle.
Patrick Beverley played great, offensively, in the first half. He scored on a floater and made two threes in the first half. But he wasn’t as good defensively. But things changed after intermission. Beverley missed his three second-half shots and shut down Jamal Murray in the fourth quarter, holding him to 0-for-4 shooting and zero points.