The record may not indicate it, but the last time Philadelphia and Dallas met up on the court was abnormal to most of the Sixers’ games this season. The embarrassing loss is an outlier to what has been a season of competitive games. Quite often, the Sixers would enter the fourth quarter with a chance to win with a manageable deficit.
Saturday night’s game at the Wells Fargo Center was much more similar to the rest of the season than the previous contest in “Big D”. The Sixers actually had a lead in the game’s final 15 minutes. The turning point, ironically, was when the Sixers called a timeout with the lead and the Mavericks sprinted out to a 25-13 run to secure what would have been an awfully embarrassing loss.
Some fans get caught up in the losing streak, but there are positives to take from the game. Michael Carter-Williams became the first Sixer in nearly 20 years to put up a stat line of 15+ points, 15+ assists and 10+ rebounds. The second-year player had by far his best game of the season, recording the triple double with 18 points, 16 assists and 10 rebounds.
K.J. McDaniels also had a tremendous game, again coming off the bench. The rookie added 21 points to a team missing its leading scorer, Tony Wroten. McDaniels managed to achieve a +3 while on the court, and scored 21 points in 32 minutes—more minutes than anyone except Michael Carter-Williams and Nerlens Noel.
Dallas rested superstar Dirk Nowitzki, anticipating an easy victory to wrap up a 3 games in 4 days stretch, with Thanksgiving being the only off day. Six Mavs reached double figures to lead a balanced attack. Tyson Chandler was a force for them inside against the Sixers’ inexperienced front court, leading the Mavericks with 20 points. He also thrived late in the game trying to tip missed shots out to his guards.
The trio of Carter-Williams, McDaniels and Noel nearly matched the Mavericks’ 40 team rebounds. Philadelphia didn’t struggle in one category offensively, other than turnovers. They turned the ball over 24 times, twice as much as Dallas.
The search for victory number one continues Monday night, also at home. They will host the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. The loss on Saturday set a record for most losses to open the season as a franchise.
"I'm fine and I don't want those guys worrying about any record," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said, via the A.P. "We just have to keep our group together and move them along. I have so much respect for that group because their spirit has not been broken."
