Some thoughts and observations left over from the 76ers’ most recent game, a 111-104 win over the Phoenix Suns on Saturday at Talking Stick Resort Arena.
Since returning from a right wrist injury that had sidelined him since June, Carl Landry has looked every bit the part of the savvy, professional veteran the Sixers were hoping he could be. The sample size is small, but in two games back, the 32-year old power forward has posted a total of 26 points and 13 rebounds in 36 minutes. He’s also hit eight of his 10 free throw attempts.Against Phoenix, Landry’s contributions were massive. He notched 16 points, 10 of which were produced during a back-and-forth stretch of the third quarter. He hit all five of his field goal attempts in the period. Three of those buckets either allowed the Sixers to reclaim the lead, or tie the game. The Purdue product finished seven for 10 from the field overall. Furthermore, Landry displayed critical endurance, logging 23 minutes on a night when the Sixers’ frontcourt was without Jahlil Okafor, and then lost Richaun Holmes to a right knee sprain in the second quarter. On top of that, starting power forward Jerami Grant found himself in foul trouble. Prior to Saturday’s match-up with the Suns, Landry reflected on what it was like to finally get back on the floor in Wednesday’s 113-100 loss to his hometown Milwaukee Bucks.”It felt good,” he said. “Obviously, I was a little nervous, trying to get my timing, rhythm back. We all know that will take time. Just trying to feel everything out and play hard.”Landry gained particular confidence early in Wednesday’s fourth quarter, when he gathered his own missed jump-hook shot in the lane, and deposited the offensive rebound for a put-back two-pointer. While he was pleased with his physical play in that sequence, he still recognizes he might need get a few more appearances to build up his conditioning and stamina.”Towards the end of that time, started to get a little bit tired,” said Landry, referring to his performance versus the Bucks. “Obviously, these guys have two, maybe even three months ahead of me, so I’m trying to play catch-up. The training staff is doing an amazing job making sure I’m doing it the right way.”With Landry in the fold, and Ish Smith obtained Wednesday via a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, the Sixers can suddenly deploy two proven veterans onto the court. “I think experience helps, is the key,” Landry said. “Year after year, we look at San Antonio, and we’re like, you know what, they’re old. Count them out. Every year. I’ve been counting them out for the last decade. But, they got experience, and they know the way. With the addition of Ish, he has some experience, he’s been in some good games, playoff experience. It’ll definitely help this ballclub.”
For the most part this season, Jerami Grant has done an effective job of avoiding foul problems. The second-year Syracuse product averages 2.7 harms per game, and has committed three fouls or less in 24 of his 32 appearances this campaign. Worth noting is that Grant has enjoyed this disciplined season all while primarily assuming power forward duties at just 6’8″ tall, 210 pounds. Saturday in Phoenix, however, was an exception for Grant. He was whistled for fouls three times in the first quarter, before being charged with his fourth personal 66 seconds into the third period. Grant was then assessed a fifth foul with 6:45 remaining in the final frame. In the NBA, a player is disqualified from a game after accumulating six personal fouls. Despite being forced to perform a delicate balancing act in the home stretch of a competitive fourth quarter, Grant still managed to play aggressive, and make an impact. With less than two and a half minutes left, and the Sixers in front by six, Grant outmuscled Jon Leuer, who boasts two inches of height on Grant, for a pivotal rebound off Brandon Knight’s elbow jumper that went awry. On the Sixers’ ensuing offensive possession, Ish Smith unfurled a finger-roll lay-up that put them ahead, 108-100, and offered the team enough breathing room to fend off Phoenix. All in all, Grant finished with a plus-minus rating of 14, tying for the Sixers’ second-highest total. Even though his five personal fouls limited him to 22 minutes, and he missed his three field goal attempts, Grant hit all four of his foul shots, grabbed three boards, and had one assist. Brett Brown has appreciated the way the 2014 second-round pick has approached his assignments this year. Grant has both started and come off the bench, and also bounced around between the small and power forward spots. “I think he’s doing well handling it,” said Brown, who highlighted Grant’s versatility. “I think he should be and is excited, because really, all is you’ve told him is you get a chance to play more when you have that swing vote, you can play three [small forward] or you can play four [power forward]. Defensively, I see Jerami being most valuable because he can back and forth. His growth will be can he stretch the floor in a few years, so we allow him to shoot [three-pointers]. He deserves it, because we practice them a lot.”Grant took his 61st three-point shot in Phoenix. He has made 11 of them. On the opposite end, his 53 blocks rank ninth in the NBA.
Prior to Phoenix enduring a season-high-tying fourth consecutive defeat, head coach Jeff Hornacek gave his thoughts on two Sixers-related topics. First, he weighed in on the value of Ish Smith. Smith was the Suns’ back-up point guard during Hornacek’s first season in 2013-2014.”He brings the energy, the life, the flying up and down the court,” said Hornaceck of Smith, who averaged 3.7 points and 2.6 assists in 14.4 minutes per game with Phoenix. “He’s a great kid. He definitely brings a different energy when he gets out there.”Hornacek, a former guard who began his playing career with the Suns before being sent to the Sixers as part of the July 1992 Charles Barkley swap, also offered his perspective on the offensive philosophies that Mike D’Antoni ushered into the NBA. D’Antoni coached Phoenix from 2004 through 2008, and Saturday made his first appearance as Brett Brown’s Associate Head Coach.”The speed was no surprise. I played here, and we were averaging 119 [points] a game. So, speed wasn’t a big deal. It was the effect of shooting so many three-pointers. We didn’t shoot three’s back then. Giving the guys freedom to let it fly. You get the ball up the court. More pick-and-rolls. It was an offense that was high powered. These guys were running up and down the court. They were flying. Back then, those teams were very difficult to try and stop.”In D’Antoni’s first two years overseeing Phoenix, the Suns ranked first in the NBA in three-point field goals, three-point field goal attempts
