Sixers Bell Ringer: Nets buzzer-beater hands Sixers seventh straight loss

The Philadelphia 76ers fell 105-103 on a buzzer-beater to the Brooklyn Nets, notching their seven consecutive loss.

Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 16
Jared McCain – 8
Joel Embiid – 8
Paul George – 7
Guerschon Yabusele – 4
Kelly Oubre Jr – 2
Ricky Council IV – 2
KJ Martin – 2
Justin Edwards – 2
Quentin Grimes – 2
Adem Bona – 1
Jared Butler – 1

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The Philadelphia 76ers fell to a Brooklyn Nets buzzer-beater 105-103 on Saturday night. It wasn’t pretty.

At least the Sixers didn’t waste any time tonight before giving viewers plenty of reason to find something else on. After posting just two +30-point first periods in their past 15 games, the Nets put up 40 in the opening frame against a Sixers team that seemingly has decided defense is not only optional, but discouraged.

The Sixers trailed for the majority of this one and it wasn’t even passively enjoyable basketball until the fourth period when Philadelphia finally decided to play some defense and stage a bit of a comeback.

The problem is that the comeback, however, should have only made viewers (and especially paying fans in attendance) angrier. Let me explain. That final frame showed the absolute malpractice this team is committing in by letting Joel Embiid play right now and through some of the extremely questionable rotation decisions. Embiid missed the entire fourth period after physically struggling throughout the game prior, and it was no coincidence that the Sixers were suddenly quicker and able to defend better. So why is he playing if this team is better without him in his current state? Plus, the comeback push was a highlight reel of stellar defense and rebounding by Guerschon Yabusele. Which is great, but shines a huge spotlight on earlier decisions like going to Andre Drummond at backup for Embiid before Yabu in the rotation.

They ended up losing like this, in extremely-Sixers’ fashion.

I hear you saying “oh, but losing is good! They’re tanking!”… but more on that below.

This makes seven losses in a row for Philadelphia. The Sixers are off on Sunday before returning to the floor at the Wells Fargo Center on Monday night to host the Chicago Bulls. Philadelphia trails Chicago by just 1.5 games for the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference, as if it matters.

Let’s get to the Bell Ringer.

No one.

I’m effectively cancelling Bell Ringer for tonight. You could not convince me there is a member of this team or organization that deserves praise after that performance. OK, maybe Guerschon Yabusele… but I have too much to say to just give it to him and call it a night.

I want to be clear: this is not a team tanking or even “stealth tanking”. That would be giving the Sixers way too much credit right now. This is a team that had Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George all available and still gave up 40 points in the first period alone to a recently-struggling Nets offense. This is a team sending Embiid and George out onto the floor when clearly neither is even close to 100%. This is a team that continues to make more and more questionable rotation decisions within games as well as seemingly-collectively deciding that defense is optional.

The Embiid and George situations, especially Embiid’s, become more difficult to understand with each passing day. Embiid is still physically extremely limited and was visibly in pain multiple times against the Nets. The Sixers looked genuinely better with him off the floor. So, for the 10837th time I ask: why is he out there? Even if he wants to be out there, it can’t be just up to him and, after tonight, it’s going to be extremely hard for the organization to justify sending him (or letting him) back out on the floor to play again.

This is not tanking. You are not tanking by sending out your injured center that just signed a multi-year extension with your franchise. This is a team drowning, trying desperately and fruitlessly to pretend their heads are above water when they’re actually already halfway down the drain. Most egregiously is that this is a organization that is trying to convince paying fans that they are not giving up on the season and are still trying for a push to the playoffs via the Play-In Tournament. But this is the product they are putting on display each night? In front of their own crowd? OK, sure.

Plus, say they somehow move up into a Play-In position. There’s only 26 games left for this team to make a miraculous turnaround from complete embarrassment night in and night one, to a playoff contender. No one should be holding their breath for that to happen and it’s appalling anyone with the Sixers’ organization is pretending otherwise.

The Play-In also won’t magically heal both Embiid and George (or make George play defense, for what it’s worth) nor will it fix the array of rotational issues currently marring Nick Nurse’s coaching.

It’s just embarrassing for the team. It’s egregious on behalf of the franchise. It’s absolutely unacceptable to the fans. Even if the losses end up being better for the Sixers, it is happening in spite of the franchise’s practices, not due to any meritorious strategy.

Because of that, you won’t catch me giving this organization even a shred of credit for “tanking” when they clearly are doing so unintentionally.

So, tonight, the winner of the Bell Ringer is no one. “No one” will receive a tally in the season standings starting the next contest too, just in case we have to resort to this again in the remaining 26 games…