Real-time observation: The 76ers lead in the second half and fall to the Pacers

The 76ers had a chance to lock the No. 1 seed in Indiana on Tuesday night, which failed to materialize when the Pacers lost 103-94 to their opponents.

This is what I see.

Kindness

• No matter how bad you think this version of the Pacers is, someone needs to step up and lead Joel Embiid in the absence. In the first half of the game, Ben Simmons was tall and shot at him. He should have taken on his own responsibility to deal with Philadelphia with the opening time (which should be a keyword), which made this game out of reach. .

Simmons uses Mike Scott as the nominal center, uses a smaller appearance and has more offensive lanes than he requires for Indiana. Nevertheless, there were sometimes no results in the past. It is always a welcome sight to see Simmons’s power travel through that space to the basket.

For me, the most important part of Simmons when he started was that he did not allow too much efficiency to prevent him from attacking. Instead of using a 3 for 7 opening to completely transform into an organizer mode, Simmons continued to hunt down his offense, creating more opportunities for himself as a passer and providing more open shot opportunities for his teammates.

This is the performance they need him to provide. At least fist for about 24 minutes.

• It’s so happy to watch Tyrese Maxey go to work recently. What’s frightening is that despite the inconsistent roles and perhaps the worst NBA offseason for a rookie ever, he was able to step forward. step.I have been writing He may not make the playoffs, But, man, wouldn’t he let Doc Rivers take it seriously?

Maxey’s willingness to seek contact and get to the rim is a few miles higher than when he started this season.His figure seemed to make him flinch early, and Maxey struggled even attempt Shooting near the basket, he is now looking for space to score with relative ease. He has figured out how to overcome the size and length around the basket, which is crucial for him, if he can do it.

At the offensive point, Maxi has a little extra. His speed allows him to put pressure on the basket, which provides opportunities for him to kick in high positions and to kick corners, and he is increasingly taking advantage of these opportunities.

When we were on the topic of rookie performance, Isaiah Joe’s playing time in the first half looked a bit chaotic, which is understandable. The child was unable to rotate normally for a long time, he was only forced to take action due to an injury in the front.

When the second half is important, I would like to thank this young man for his rally. Joe made several big moves to maintain Philadelphia’s narrow lead, and he made one or two defensive games in a shocking manner as an assist. The rookies completed it after receiving the number, which proved the invisible time in the gym.

Bad guy

• It’s hard to figure out why Seth Curry gave up as many three-pointers as he did. In the early days of this game, he was definitely killing the Pacers, and he didn’t do this by filling up open three-pointers. On the contrary, he is like a guy who can help to attack Embiid at night.

But after the opening, Curry created a record-breaking moment, created a record-breaking moment, outstanding performance and forced the 76ers to work harder on offense. On a normal night, they have a full lineup, which is a problem for these 76ers, but when Curry is offensively or for him a lot, it’s even worse, they refuse to be able to With the high-quality appearance created, the situation is even worse.

Recently, he has become more aggressive, but he is still far away. Let it fly!

• If anyone could use the rest time between now and the start of the playoffs, it would be Danny Green, who seemed to be on his own during the game on Tuesday night. Doug McDermott is an excellent NBA role player, but like Green, he is one of the best athletes in the league, which shocked him.

The most serious crime Green committed against Indiana was that McDermott (especially the others) was completely cooked in the backdoor cut, even though he was not alone in this regard. As the 76ers choose to shrink for a long time in the game, you will see the impact of the lack of rim protection, and Domantas Sabonis chose them as passers with the vacant paint space.

(This is the 300th time. This is one of the reasons why I am always skeptical, because he can bypass Simmons more permanently. The 76ers are better defensively than usual, but the loopholes are easily exploited or even rudely removed from Learn from the opponent.)

Even if they make him heartbroken in the next game, Green will still get a certain R&R guarantee in the game between the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs.This is good news All A veterinarian, but especially a guy who has gone through countless games in the playoffs, now looks a little sluggish.

• I hope that next year there will be a better small ball center option than Scott, because when downsizing, no area should be their first choice. You might argue that Doc Rivers can simply play different looks, I agree, but Daryl Morey can certainly put a reliable five on this roster.

• Doc Rivers refuses to use his challenge. Being a neutral party is really outrageous, so I can only imagine how you would feel watching at home. Simmons’ fifth foul was suspicious at best, and since Rivers suspended the game anyway for the next game, why don’t you just give it a try in the hope that you can eliminate a loud scream?

• Performing well in Simmons three-quarters of the game, there are many moments in the fourth quarter that remind you of why someone suspects that he is a playoff performer. When the 76ers needed an organizer in a pinch, he was nowhere to be found. When the 76ers needed him to continue scoring and attacking at critical moments, he was nowhere to be found.

If you tell me that you are satisfied with your possession, his three-point line catches the ball, and no one catches the ball within 10 feet of him, it’s just a three-pointer in the fierce competition of the corner kick Scott At the end of the game, we simply could not reach a consensus. When the best players have time to get their team across the finish line, Simmons is nowhere to be found on the offensive end. It has always been this way, and it still is.

Look, this is a good Simmons game! Despite the slowdown in growth in the second half of the year, the fact remains the same. But this is where you are with him.

ugly

• Seriously, those who pass the curry three points are cruel. If this is not good, I understand, but come on!

Follow Kyle on Twitter: @KyleNeubeck