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Sixers Vs. Bulls: Evan Turner on C.J. Watson, Jrue Holiday on Rip Hamilton

Evan Turner and CJ Watson doing some Game One jostlin'. More on the way! Picture from: Dennis Wierzbicki-US PRESSWIRE - Presswire
Evan Turner and CJ Watson doing some Game One jostlin'. More on the way! Picture from: Dennis Wierzbicki-US PRESSWIRE - Presswire
Presswire

The starting lineup tweaks seem to be written on the wall, as we'll likely get to see Evan Turner starting tonight in place of Jodie Meeks. As Jrue Holiday let slip, Doug Collins plans to have Jrue covering Richard Hamilton (who went 6-7 for 19 points in Game One) while Evan will be covering C.J. Watson in place of the injured Derrick Rose. The good people at Blog-a-Bull are...excited about that?

Holiday is too small, but the 76ers having to throw everything but the kitchen sink at this game to grab rebounds has this move making sense. Holiday has the speed, but Hamilton counters speed very often by curling around screens on the catch for open looks at the elbow. The Sixers are them faced with the dilemma: weakly challenge Rip or leave rebounding positions to help.

Firstly, Jrue and Turner have essentially the same wingspan per DX. Second, Jrue is the better defender between them and less of an offensive threat in the half-court than Turner is. They'll need Evan's energy to stay high so he can score from a set play. If he's chasing Rip around through screens and fire pits, he'll have less lift on his already iffy jumper. At this point in his career, Jrue isn't that pivotal or effective in the half court.

I'm sure we'll see both guys switching between them and when John Lucas and Kyle Korver come in, there should be an unfortunate sparing of Lou and Jodie as well. If the Sixers have a chance at winning the game, it'd be by dominating the Bulls backcourt to make up for their lightness up front.

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