3 observations after McCain scores 20, young Sixers lose by landslide in preseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Three down, three to go.
The Sixers reached the halfway point of their preseason schedule Saturday night with a 139-89 loss to the Celtics at TD Garden, falling to 1-2 in exhibition play.
Jared McCain was the Sixers’ top producer, recording 20 points on 9-of-21 shooting, three assists, three rebounds and three steals.
The Sixers will finish their three-game road trip on Monday when they take on the Hawks in Atlanta. Here are some observations from their stunning defeat in Boston:
The Celtics have a huge advantage over the young Sixers
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse took a reasonable and conservative approach on the second night of a game. consecutive pre-seasongiving the game to most of its veteran players.
This meant Guerschon Yabusélé started at center against his former team and opened the night alongside Jeff Dowtin Jr., McCain, Ricky Council IV and KJ Martin.
The match was not close. Celtics center Luke Kornet had 11 points in the first six minutes and Boston took a 40-18 lead on a Derrick White three-pointer just before the first-quarter buzzer. The Celtics had giant advantages almost everywhere you looked: size, experience, All-Star talent. In less than 16 minutes, Boston’s lead was 26 points.
It didn’t help that the Sixers missed several wide-open jumpers and started 0 of 9 from three-point range as a team. Two-way contract player Lester Quinones finally broke the ice at the end of the first quarter.
McCain’s play inside the arc
McCain pulled down a strong defensive rebound in the first quarter, then sprinted forward in search of a coast-to-coast layup. Jaylen Brown’s block attempt forced him to miss.
The 20-year-old shot just 2 of 8 from the floor in the first half, although both of his shots were impressive. He converted a nifty layup around Kornet and made a tricky left-handed scoop shot.
Especially on a team with three All-Stars, Tyrese Maxey, Paul George and Joel Embiid, McCain could very well score a lot of his scoring from behind the three-point line early in his NBA career. Still, it’s worth continuing to work on finding spaces on his drives and perfecting his game between 6 and 12 feet from the rim.
As a 6-foot-3 rookie, he finds the balance between being an offensive, creative player inside the arc and adapting to the size and athleticism challenges of the NBA. This pre-season he has not lacked confidence; McCain went straight to an all-defensive guard in white and scored a layup over him. He also narrowly missed a big dunk in the fourth quarter.
McCain assisted Yabusele on three straight points in the second quarter. He showed an innate ability to use his body in the pick-and-roll and hit his teammates in rhythm on pops and rolls.
The Duke product’s preseason three-point numbers were down a bit with a 1-of-8 outing. Through three exhibition games, he is 7-of-20 from long range.
Nothing for Martin to do beyond the arc
Martin’s athletic abilities were on display every time he had the opportunity to run down a hill.
He scored the Sixers’ first points on a pick-and-roll with Dowtin. Later, he scored a quick Council lob.
Martin played 28 minutes and scored nine points on 4-for-7 shooting, four rebounds and two assists. He attempted just one three-pointer Saturday night, missing a first-quarter jumper from the right corner.
If he could drain some threes before the end of the preseason, Martin’s case for rotation minutes would likely improve. While the Sixers want everyone to play to their strengths, Nurse spoke positively about Martin’s summer work with a shooting coach. Any in-game success during the preseason would be significant.
