If you were afraid the Sixers were ever going to walk on to a court and take an opponent lightly, think again. There will be no “trap” games for this winless team, as Michael Carter-Williams assured everyone that they will not take any teams lightly.
Michael Carter-Williams on facing 4-12 T-Wolves: "We're not going to take any team lightly." Take lightly? Reminder: You're 0-17.
— Glen Macnow (@RealGlenMacnow) December 3, 2014
I’m not sure if he’s just naïve and doesn’t realize he plays for the absolute worst team in the NBA or he just doesn’t think before he opens his mouth. Either way, it is a flat-out ridiculous statement to make.
In Monday’s game, Philadelphia faced a San Antonio team that sat Tony Parker and Tim Duncan. Despite that, it was a 15-point game at halftime. Manu Ginobili played only 13 minutes and Kawhi Leonard did not play at all in the third quarter. That still did not matter and the Sixers again struggled to defeat.
Whether you are on board with the rebuild or not, Carter-Williams comments likely come off as disturbing. It sends off the indication that the team could in fact somehow take a bad team lightly, and that it is up to them to clarify that they would not. Furthermore it shows an utter lack of self-awareness that the fact that the team has yet to win a game is not a conscious thought of the players. You just can’t act snobbish towards teams in, frankly, much better positions than you are.
The match up itself is an interesting one because it features the player Brett Brown admitted to anticipating having on his roster last season, guard/forward Andrew Wiggins. Acquired by Minnesota in the Kevin Love trade, the rookie has struggled with consistency, but has flashed encouraging signs. Overall, he is averaging just less than 12 points per game on the season. The match up will get to show Sixers fans just how much closer they could be to some victories if they had landed with Wiggins, not the injured Joel Embiid.
Game Notes:
- Thad Young, traded by Philadelphia in the Wiggins/Love deal, will make his first career appearance as an opponent of Philadelphia. Playing as a regular in Minnesota, he is averaging 13.4 points per game in 31.7 minutes per game. He has an odd split of shooting 40% from three, but just 58% from the line.
- Nerlens Noel, who was scratched from Monday’s tilt with a bad hip, is expected to be available for tonight’s game.
- The Timberwolves have lost each of their last three home games by an average margin of 19.3 points.
- Though the 4th team to open the season 0-17, the Sixers would tie a record for worst start with a loss tonight.
Injuries:
Kevin Martin (wrist), Nikola Pekovic (wrist) and Ricky Rubio (ankle), all starters for Minnesota, will sit tonight with their respective injuries. Ronny Turiaf (hip) will also miss the contest. Noel, as mentioned above, is expected to be available. Tony Wroten (knee) and Alexy Shved (hip) will be unable to contribute off the bench. Usualls Joel Embiid (foot) and Jason Richardson (knee/foot) are again out.
Projected Lineups:
Philadelphia:
PG- Michael Carter-Williams
SG- Hollis Thompson
SF- Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
PF- Brandon Davies
C- Henry Sims
Minnesota:
PG- Mo Williams
SG- Corey Brewer
SF- Andrew Wiggins
PF- Thad Young
C- Gorgui Dieng
Prediction: This is a closer one, but Minnesota pulls ahead late and doesn’t look back.
