Sixers vs. Hornets takeaways: Kyle Lowry needs to remain a starter; Tobias Harris heeds Joel Embiid’s advice

Kyle Lowry showed why he should remain in the 76ers starting lineup.

Tobias Harris benefitted from his conversation with Joel Embiid. And Paul Reed might not like this, but he looked good coming off the bench.

Those three things stood out in the Sixers’ 121-114 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

Lowry has been the unquestioned leader of the Sixers the moment he participated in his first practice on Feb 20. He’s been directing teammates where they need to be. And the offense runs much smoother when the six-time All-Star is on the floor.

So with the Sixers in a little rut, it wasn’t all that surprising that coach Nick Nurse inserted him in the starting lineup against the Hornets.

Lowry responded with 15 points and 10 assists. He made 5 of 9 shots — including going 3-for-6 on three-pointers. He scored 12 points in the second half.

“He was really good,” Tyrese Maxey said of sharing the backcourt with Lowry. “It was really fun. It adds another guy that can handle the ball that I can play with off the ball sometimes. So it was great.”

In his 18th season, Lowry is serving as a mentor to Maxey and reserve point guard Cam Payne. He’s also teaching them how to become elite traditional point guards. But when need be, the Olympic gold medalist steps up and provides scoring.

So is Nurse strongly considering keeping him in the starting lineup with Maxey?

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“I’m median strongly considering it,” Nurse joked. “Yeah, I’m considering it.”

Asked if we’ll see that in Sunday’s game at the Dallas Mavericks, Nurse responded “I do not know. We’ll review that in a minute.”

There’s really not much to review. The Sixers (34-25) are better offensively with Lowry on the floor.

Harris had a conversation with Embiid early this week while battling through a shooting slump. The power forward followed that up with 31 points and a game-high 12 rebounds against the Hornets.

“It was extremely helpful,” Harris said. “I mean you guys know this, but some people don’t, but Joel is a very intelligent basketball mind, and how he sees the game, and what he sees. You know he’s been with me here the longest out of anybody in this whole group. Has seen ups and downs of my game, and has seen me at my best and me at my worst. But we had a great conversation.”

Harris had averaged 12.6 points on 35.1% shooting — including 27.3% on three-pointers — in the last seven games.

“At the end of it he just said, you had a rough seven-game stretch. Not 70 games,” Harris said. “He’s like, ‘Just figure out ways with a new group, figure out ways that you can be at your best.’ He gave me a few advice on how I can figure out how to continue to just go out there and play and be efficient for the group. Another thing he says is “You’re not out there saving lives so, it’s basketball, like enjoy it, figure it out, and don’t put too much pressure on yourself.’”

With that said, Harris focused on controlling what he could against the Hornets. He was aggressive and active on the boards. Harris also figured out ways to pick up his teammates from time to time.

“And I was successful tonight,” he said, ”and you’re supposed to carry that on to the next game.”

Reed learned during Thursday’s practice that Mo Bamba would replace him in the starting lineup against the Hornets (15-45).

“I was mentally prepared,” he said.

That was an understatement.

Reed finished with 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting to go with eight rebounds — including a game-best five offensive — to go with three and two blocks in 23 minutes, 30 seconds.

“I knew I had to go out there and play hard,” he said. “That’s what the team needed from me. I’m the type of guy, of course I’m going to have a chip on my shoulder after they demoted me like that. But at the end of the day, I got to be a supportive teammate. And at the end of the day, it’s about the team.

“So whatever the team has to do to win, then I’m all in for it.”

Reed provided a spark off the bench. He played like someone trying to prove Nurse made a mistake by demoting him. Nurse told the media Bamba got the start due to the matchup. But if Reed continues to play with a chip off the bench, Nurse might want to keep him in that role.