Sixers vs. Kings Postgame Quotes: “I’ve said it before, our offense will come.”

Brett Brown (PHI)

On seeing Joel bounce back…

It didn’t surprise anybody. The way that they defended him in Toronto, along with Marc Gasol, was effective on that night. Sacramento came at Joel and double-teamed him, and everybody else, as often as they could. We did and he did a pretty good job of playing out of the post and finding open shooters. In reality, we missed open threes and he did a great job of passing. For him to come out the way that he did, it shouldn’t surprise anybody.

On Matisse Thybulle’s night…

When he can get his feet set, and he has proper footwork, he looks good and balanced. Then he started getting deflections and steals and I’m sure he felt good about his defense. You would think it carried over into the confidence in his shot, but I thought that fundamentally, he looked proper. He looked fundamentally correct and balanced and he made them [shots]. We needed every one of them [points].

I think that he’s growing as a reliable defensive player. When you go into that team [Sacramento] and you see all of those shooters, you need to have that knowledge of who’s on the court. As a coach, you need to have that confidence that your players are going to follow the game plan. He’s slowly starting to understand, and I think he’s getting better and he’s making shots.

On the team he has…

We are starting to morph into a very unique team. This is not a traditional team with a stretch four, three flyers, a point guard and a center. It’s not like that. We are really big, and I think growing the team where you can help them score and feel more comfortable in an environment is most on my mind. I like our defense. I’ve said it before, our offense will come.

On the 101 consecutive sellouts and going 8-0 at home…

It’s amazing to me because when we travel, I purposefully go down the bench and point to the crowd. I remind our team of how lucky we are to play in this city where there are no pockets of empty seats. Not only aren’t there pockets of empty seats, but there are rabid, passionate, vocal fans, that say whatever they want. It’s Philly. To look out there and feel the home crowd, boos or cheers, you feel it. With our 8-0 record at home, there is a reason for that, and they deserve credit. That volume of sellouts is impressive.

We need the wins at home. We are trying to figure things out on the road, and you need that. We love playing at home and we love protecting our home court. We understand that this crowd appreciates and pays for effort. For the most part, I think that we give it and I hope that they feel the same.

Ben Simmons (PHI)

On setting the pace early…

The first quarter is what we expected, and we were really trying to maintain that the whole game and we did it down the stretch.

On whether he looked to get Joel involved early or not…

He did that all on his own. He’s a dominant player. We love seeing him come out like that and he was locked in.

On Matisse’s night...

When he doesn’t think, he’s a great player. He’s long, so he gets steals and blocks. He’s one of the best defenders on the team. Offensively, he’s spotting up and getting to the rim. He’s been great.

On the encouragement of seeing the bench play so well…

Everyone can contribute. Whether it’s scoring, rebounds, deflections or steals, everyone has a role on this team.

Joel Embiid (PHI)

On his fast start and play throughout the game…

Obviously, after the last performance, I just had to be a little bit more aggressive but stay within the concept of the game plan. I had to make the right plays and I thought I made them today. All credit to my teammates that found me. We just didn’t rush either.

On if he was trying to prove something coming out of the game after last performance…

It was just about my teammates, the organization, just trying to do a better job to put us in a situation to win games…it wasn’t about proving anything and it was about making the right plays. In Toronto, I had zero points, but I felt like I did, in the circumstances at hand, what I was supposed to. I play for myself, I always play for my teammates and I always play to win. Whatever it takes, that’s what I’m going to do and tonight it was a different story. I was a little freer and I took advantage of it.

Matisse Thybulle (PHI)

On his offensive game and how if he thinks it is improving…

I think the guys just put me in good positions to make shots. I didn’t do anything crazy, I just spaced the floor and they were able to find me and the shots fell.

On trying to keep out of foul trouble but stay active defensively…

I think I’m constantly working on it. I think this was one of my better games in terms of finding that balance, but it’s like Joel said, guys guard differently every game, guys play differently every game, so it’s hard to know what to expect. A lot of these games, it’s my first time playing these teams and these players. I’m just trying to get out there and get a feel for everything, while at the same time, just stay solid. I think that’s one of Coach’s biggest things with me, just not taking too much risk and I think today was a good one for me. I was able to see what I could get done without making any crazy decisions.

On being 8-0 at home…

For me, it feels good. Every time I get out there, it’s another experience to get out in front of these fans. Each game, I’m blown away by how much energy they bring and just how [Joel] interacts with them and how much they help us win these games. It’s been really cool to just see us take care of business at home.

Luke Walton (SAC)

On what he liked from the group that closed out the game…

They were playing as a unit. Every time the shot went up, you saw all five guys in there. You saw—what we call “sandwich rebounding”—the guards coming back in to help, jumping up over. And then once we had the rebound, we got out and ran, which is something we talk about a lot, but especially against this team. [Philadelphia] is a big team. If you let them get set in the half court, there’s not going to be a ton of space out there. So [the final group] did a nice job of competing defensively, playing as a unit, helping, rotating and all five guys getting the rebound and pushing.

On how encouraging the comeback was…

Our guys have shown that they have that [resilience] now, which is great because at the beginning of the season, we didn’t have that ability. We have that now. So, it’s time to continue to push and get past that—where it’s not just about fighting and not giving in, but it’s about going into arenas and taking games. And listen, I get it, it takes time. It’s not easy. It’s a new group. We’ve got a lot of players hurt, we’ve got a lot of different lineups going together, [Nemanja Bjelica] picked up his fifth foul. We had a group in there that never played together before. So I do respect that about us, but I also know that we have that. That’s part of us. So let’s continue to push it and not have to keep fighting to get back into a game.

On challenges facing team…

There’s always challenges when you’ve got a group that you’re trying to patiently build into a winning team. You can look at Philly—it’s a great organization, right? It took them however many years it was. But now they know each other, they know where to find each other, they’ve been in the playoffs, they’ve been tested. So, we’re earlier in those stages, but it takes time and there’s lots of different things we’re constantly trying to grow with our group.

Justin James (SAC)

On defending on the floor

Everybody wants somebody who can defend, who can be a versatile player and be able to do multiple things on the floor. It gives you the opportunity to be on the floor.

On defending the 76ers…

They’re definitely a great team. They have a lot of size and they affect a lot of shots around the rim. All credit to them. They did their job and they came out with a win.

Harrison Barnes (SAC)

On challenges with size…

It’s a different look than what we’ve gone against this season. They are a heavy post-up team and they brought a physical game. In the first half, we really didn’t match that intensity, but definitely going in the second half, we were just trying to get over that hump.

On Justin James…

Justin did a great job tonight coming in. He had high energy and was ready to play. That’s the confidence we need from him. We need him to go out there and play.

On seeing Dewayne Dedmon defend Embiid…

I liked his attitude and physicality. Obviously, down in the post it was a lot of banging. I think that kind of thing got us going a little bit in the first half and he carried that energy and that edge through the second half.