Springer, Terq combine for 49 points in Summer Sixers’ loss to Hawks

The Summer Sixers coughed up another one as they fell 99-98 to the Atlanta Hawks Thursday in Las Vegas. Jaden Springer once again led all scorers, going for 29 points on 8-of-16 shooting, but first-round pick Kobe Bufkin hit a floater with 12 seconds left that would be the game-winner.

Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.

This felt like the most structure this squad was played with so far, certainly from an offensive standpoint. For summer league standards, they got into a fair amount of sets and were running plays nearly every time down the floor.

The most encouraging sign from Springer was how quickly he was putting up threes off the catch. He went 2-of-5 from downtown.

Though it probably would have been better for him if he wasn’t initiating the offense on the final two possessions of the game. He found the hot hand in Terquavion Smith, but the two weren’t on the same page and Smith didn’t get a clean look off.

Speaking of Smith, it was an odd night for him as he came off the bench, but he had his best shooting splits of the summer. He’s had good scoring nights without shooting the ball particularly well, and it only felt like he was due for a night like this.

Smith finished with 20 points, shooting 7-of-10 from the field and 3-of-5 from downtown.

Greg Brown III slid into the starting lineup for Smith. Brown has been the best big for the Sixers in Vegas, and he had a solid showing again today. He blocked six shots while scoring 11 points and pulling down seven rebounds.

The final game of seeding for the Sixers is tomorrow at 5 p.m. ET, when they’ll take on the Los Angeles Clippers.