Sixers can’t keep up with Jazz despite Simmons’ 42 points

Tonight, the Sixers dropped their third straight game as they lost to the Utah Jazz, 134-123. Joel Embiid was a late scratch in the game due to back tightness.

The Sixers made eight 3-pointers, while the Jazz made 18. There’s your game.

Here are a few thoughts about each Sixer who suited up:

Ben Simmons - whew. What a game from Simmons. He was aggressive from the opening tip, scoring 19 points in the first quarter alone. Simmons continues to show improved touch around the rim lately, and he’s looked like a surefire All-Star these past few weeks. He finished tonight’s game with a career-high 42 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds. He kept the Sixers in this one the whole time.

Tobias Harris - great game scoring the ball from Harris, who made a concerted effort to assert himself on offense with Embiid on the bench. He finished with a season-high 36 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.

Seth Curry - not a great game from Seth, who clearly has difficulty getting his shot off with a defender nearby. Tonight, the Jazz put the 6-foot-8 Joe Ingles on him at times, and his length really frustrated Curry, who went just 1-of-4 from 3.

Danny Green - poor game offensively for Green. 1-of-6 overall, 1-of-4 from 3, and one ill-conceived ISO dribble jumper in the guts of the game.

Mike Scott - Scott got the surprise start tonight against Rudy Gobert. While I don’t hate the logic from Doc Rivers — without Joel, you might as well try to stretch Gobert away from the rim, if possible — the problem is that unfortunately Scott just isn’t good. He did hit both of his 3-point attempts in 17 minutes.

Dwight Howard - had one of his better games as a Sixer, totaling 14 points and 12 rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench. The trouble with Dwight is that he fouls too much (four tonight), can’t shoot, and can be exposed, defensively, if you get him moving side-to-side. Utah punished him a few times tonight, though Dwight was far from the top of the list of reasons the Sixers didn’t pull this one out.

Matisse Thybulle - a regular Matisse game. 2 steals, 2 blocks, 3 shots. Blocked Jordan Clarkson on a 3-pointer, in what felt like Clarkson’s only miss tonight (he had 40 off the bench for Utah).

Furkan Korkmaz - man, Korkmaz can’t buy a bucket lately. His shot has abandoned him. 0-of-5 from the field tonight in 21 minutes, missing both 3s he took. It’s tough to see a role for Korkmaz if his shot isn’t falling, since he provides little else on the court.

Tyrese Maxey - Maxey looks green. He shows flashes — a converted floater here, a drained mid-ranger there. But he can’t shoot with any consistency at this point, and the foul he committed on a 3-point-shooting Jordan Clarkson to end a quarter was emblematic of the rookie mistakes he’s likely to continue making this season. I’m still excited for his development, I’m just doubtful we see him make much of an impact this year.

Isaiah Joe - Joe got three minutes of run in the fourth quarter. He should get more, as one of the only players on the team willing to chuck from beyond the arc with abandon.

The Sixers moved to 18-10, and Utah improved its league-leading record to 23-5.

With the 1-3 West Coast road trip now complete, the Sixers head home to Philly, where they’ll play the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.