Um, the Sixers?

     Philly Sports have a reputation of being absolute garbage. Well, their teams often let down ridiculously dedicated fans and tank in the Championship game (or games)...that is, if they even make it to the playoffs in the first place. South Philly was going crazy, after all, the Eagles were 6-0, the Phillies made it to the World Series, the Union had an amazing regular season, and even the Flyers were third in their division and had a winning record (we'll see how long that lasts). Everyone figured the Sixers would do the same. With all the additions the team had made, Philadelphia looked like the "overdog" -- the team that could not be beat. Well, not exactly.

    It's easy to get caught up in the records and the numbers, I do as well, but for a second, let's just address the fact that we all know. The 76's have a losing record, and Joel Embiid is under-performing. Of course it is difficult to accuse Embiid of under-performing because he literally carries the entire City of Brotherly love on his shoulders.

Both Embiid and Maxey had 31 points

                Photo Credit: The Philadelphia Inquirer

    Alright, I really like numbers...just not the 76s' numbers. The Sixers are 12th in the conference, 1-4, and getting destroyed by teams they easily could have destroyed. After all the hype, the 76s aren't living up to it. 

    Joel Embiid is the reason Philadelphia has managed the playoffs the past few years. Embiid is averaging 27.6 points, 10 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game. That isn't saying much, since they've only played five games, but these statistics are pretty good. James Harden, Joel Embiid's right hand man, is averaging nearly a triple double: 25 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 9.6 assists. Tyrese Maxey, the right hand man to Harden, is averaging 20 points and six assists per game. Against the Raptors on Wednsday, Maxey had 31 points, and drained four threes. Pretty solid stats. So what's the problem? 

    Defense. Teams are racking up plenty of points from the Sixers weak transition defense. Pascal Siakam and Gary Trent jr had 20 and 27 points respectively, probably because the 76's D watched them pour in three-pointers, and left them alone behind the arc. 

    By the way, Matisse Thybulle has played five minutes the entire season. Thybulle is the solution. With a wingspan of nearly seven feet (that's 1 Joel Embiid), Thybulle has averaged at least 1.4 per game in each season (and obviously not this one). Thybulle really has the defensive touch that Philly has utilized the past couple of years. Defense is the problem with this Sixers team, and Thybulle has the ability to change that. 

The above photo was taken from the Philadelphia Inquirer  Photo taken by Frank Gunn/AP Image used for commentary.