Hoops Habit
Fansided

Philadelphia’s February: A Tale Of Two Halves

By Simon Smith

Feb 11, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) reacts to his three pointer against the Miami Heat during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Philadelphia 76ers won 117-109. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Robert Covington (33) reacts to his three pointer against the Miami Heat during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Philadelphia 76ers won 117-109. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Quick Turnaround

The ice-cold start to February, however, didn’t last long. Despite all the distractions surrounding the team, the Sixers ability to turn this around so quickly has been a credit to all involved.

Here’s a basic overview of how their

  • Points per game (PPG): 111.3 (Ranked 7th)
  • Field-goal percentage (FG%): 45.6 (17th)
  • Three-point percentage (3P%): 31.8 (29th)
  •  Rebounds per game (RPG): 45.7 (8th)
  • Assists per game (APG): 24.3 (10th)
  • Offensive rating (ORTG): 105.0 (17th)
  • Defensive rating (DRTG): 103.5 (9th)
  • PACE: 106.6 (1st)

Of course these represent a dramatic improvement in a number of categories. The two areas that jump off the page are the increase in points per game and pace.

The noticeable increase in pace (the number of possessions per 48 minutes) for the Sixers has naturally led to more scoring opportunities. The team averaged 14.9 points per game more than during the initial five games.

Furthermore, their pace increase was so pronounced that they even surpassed the high octane offense of the Houston Rockets, who led the league in scoring during this period. As head coach Brett Brown noted recently:

"“Our pace has been excellent. I’m proud of the improved pace. I hope that when you have a coach and a sports science program that comes in from Day 1, and we’ve talked about this, where we said, ‘You’re going to be in the best shape of your life, you’re going to be in career-best fitness.’ “The quick sentence after that is the reward is we’re going to run. You can’t say then that we’re going to walk it up the floor. That’s not who we are. Our pace has been relentless lately. We’re proud of our pace.”"

Below is a snapshot of how some of the Sixers’ key players performed during the back end of February:

Robert Covington
17.4 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 45.8 FG%, 40.4 3P%, 34.1 MPG

Dario Saric
20.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 47.4 FG%, 32.2 MPG

Nik Stauskas
11.6 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 45.5 FG%, 44.4 3P%, 26.0 MPG

Jahlil Okafor
10.8 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 51.2 FG%, 21.4 MPG

The sharp rise in production of Saric and Covington is most encouraging. The departure of Ilyasova is going to see even more opportunities afforded to Saric, and his recent play suggests this to be a wise move.

And after a terrible start to his season overall (7.4 PPG on 26.2 percent shooting from the field), Covington has seen his production and confidence rise steadily as the season has progressed.

And with the continued absence of Embiid, Saric’s recently play has certainly propelled him into the discussion for the league’s rookie of the year. In particular, Saric’s consistency since being given increased responsibility has been most impressive for a first-year player.