With three days between the Sixers 120-88 loss to Toronto and their next game in Dallas against the Mavericks, Brett Brown wasted no time in getting his team back to work. The young Philadelphia basketball team was on the practice floor the day after getting trounced on by the Raptors and two key players, Michael Carter-Williams and Nerlens Noel, aim to hit the court together for the first time since their time as AAU teammates, on Thursday night in Dallas.
"I am ecstatic," Noel said. "Michael has been a great leader for this team, and we have missed him, especially these first seven games. He will bring leadership and intensity and make everybody better."
"I think I can get him the ball in spots where he is comfortable," MCW said of Noel. "Whether it is an alley-oop or [a pass] right next to the rim where he can get a dunk.
"He helps everybody out, of course, with his blocked shots that lead to transition. We can all feed off each other." [CSNPhilly.com]
Nerlens Noel has missed the two games due to an ankle injury and is averaging 7.2 points and 5.6 rebounds over the first five games.
Last season, Carter-Williams earned Rookie of the Year after afteraging 16.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.9 steals per game. This offseason, the second year guard out of Syracuse will need some time to readjust to the game, especially since he will be carrying around more weight…literally.
"The all-around speed of the game [will be hardest on him] and he is going to have to navigate through a new body," Brown said. "He's 14 pounds heavier. Inevitably there is always conditioning issues, but he has done everything we have asked him to. Speed of the game is my first guess." [CSNPhilly.com]
After Sunday's loss, Monday would normally have been a day of rest for the young Sixers team, but Brett Brown said that players at this age need to learn from the losses and help build a strong foundation moving forward.
"For me, it is tremendously important to let them feel they have earned the right to find a win," Brown said. "They can continue to improve. They are 20 years old, they are young. They have to learn how to work, and it is not a punishment. It is just the culture we are trying to build." [CSNPhilly.com]
With MCW and Noel slated to make their first NBA appearance together on Thursday, Brett Brown said that it is just what this team needs after a deflating performance.
"It is fantastic," Brown said. "I feel like the team got a bounce and we needed that. We had our poorest performance last night, and we needed something like that." [CSNPhilly.com]
Thursday night's contest against the Mavericks is set for 8:30pm on Comcast Sportsnet.
Brandon Apter is a writer for Sixerdelphia.com
