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Ho hum. The 76ers have won their 11th consecutive game and turned another one into a blow out.
As the “Process” has molded the floundering 76ers franchise into potentially the next perennial contender, it, too, has molded myself into a haughty, entitled fan! I expect things now! This is weird.
Coming into tonight, the 76ers were without two of their big guns in Joel Embiid and Dario Saric. While not a perfect facsimile of the Celtics or Wizards, the Brooklyn Nets’ wing-heavy/switchy lineups could have presented a difficult mismatch. Of course, Ben Simmons (and you, probably) laughs at this notion, as the 76ers have been kicking butt and taking names lately. Simmons ended the night with a cool 15 points, 12 boards and 6 assists in 25 minutes. His transformation into an unstoppable force sans Embiid has been a pleasure to watch.
I’ve been critical of GM Bryan Colangelo on a lot of things, mostly PR related. However, his acquisitions on the buy-out market have been a God-send in molding this team into something dangerous. While Marco Belinelli nor Ersan Illyasova is a world-beater, they both fit into Brett Brown’s system perfectly, providing offensive outlets that the team has lacked for most of the year. Furthermore, the return of Markelle Fultz also adds another dimension to a team that’s absolutely rolling,
There’s just so much to talk about yet so much has already been said with how this team has ascended and evolved over the course of the year. Coach of the year candidate or not, Brett Brown deserves a lot of credit shepherding the young talent and integrating the new pieces. The team survived a tough early schedule and now is effectively blowing out opponents on the regular. What a time to be 76ers fan.
A more detailed recap will be up tomorrow. Until then, celebrate and react below!