Sixers-Pacers best and worst awards: T.J. Warren’s domination, Shake Milton’s struggles, an altercation between teammates
Shake Milton struggled and failed to score a point in 19 minutes, 17 seconds of action. He missed his lone shot attempt, had 1 rebound, 3 assists, 3 turnovers and 5 fouls. He also got into an argument with teammate Joel Embiid at the conclusion of the first quarter.
KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Here is my look at some of the best and worst performances from the 76ers’ 127-121 loss to the Indiana Pacers in Saturday night’s seeding-game opener for both teams in the VISA Athletic Center at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
Best performance: Only a fool wouldn’t give this award to T.J. Warren. Last I checked, my mama didn’t raise a fool.
The Pacers forward was in straight beast mode against the Sixers, finishing with a career high 53 points, with 19 coming in the fourth quarter. His three-pointer with 9.6 seconds left clinched the game. Warren made 9 of 12 three-pointers while going 4-of-4 from that distance in the fourth quarter. He also finished the game with 4 rebounds, 3 assists in 2 blocks.
Worst performance: I had to give this to Shake Milton. The Sixers point guard struggled and failed to score a point in 19 minutes, 17 seconds of action. He missed his lone shot attempt, had 1 rebound, 3 assists, 3 turnovers and 5 fouls. He also got into an argument with teammate Joel Embiid at the conclusion of the first quarter.
Best defensive performance: This was a tough one, because the Pacers guards feasted on Milton. But this goes to former Sixer T.J. McConnell. The reserve guard had two steals and displayed the trademark grit that made him a fan favorite in Philly.
Worst statistic: As bad as the combined shooting of Milton, Raul Neto and Furkan Korkmaz (1-for-8) was, I had to give this to the Sixers’ turnovers. They committed 21.
Best statistic: This goes to Warren making 9 of 12 threes.
Worst of the worst: This goes to the altercation between Embiid and Milton at the conclusion of the first quarter. The Sixers talked about improving their chemistry here at Disney World. That was hard to tell. This was definitely a bad look after Embiid said something to Milton as they walked to their seats after the first quarter. Milton turned around, said something in response, and had to be separated by teammates. Moments later, Milton went over and yelled something at Embiid, who was seated at the time.