Inside Sixers: Technology assists, wisdom from Doc Rivers, Tyrese Maxey’s new ritual

Georges Niang took off running, with Joel Embiid close behind. They looped around the far end of the 76ers’ practice court before Niang ducked into the facility’s offices, then moved through the front foyer and a hallway to pop back into the gym at the opposite side.

It was the result of the latest round of one-on-one with Embiid and P.J. Tucker, when each of the three players cycled through to match up against the others. Though they were not running at full speed while dipping into various moves to get to the basket or shoot over the top of their defender, the setting still was ripe for trash talk and personal bragging rights.

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“Every guy in the NBA has competitive juices, and you just want to keep those going for as long as possible,” Niang said right after that impromptu tour of the practice facility. “... I think every guy loves to work on their craft. … It’s like on the playground. I think all of us grew up like that.”

The mood is still high with these Sixers, who had won four in a row to improve to 16-12 more than one-third of the way through the season going into Monday night’s home game against the Toronto Raptors. They rode a first-half outburst to a comfortable win over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday, then overcame a slow start to beat a Golden State Warriors team playing without All-Stars Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Andrew Wiggins on Friday.

The Sixers also are relishing these 18 days without travel, the longest such stretch of 2022. Here are some behind-the-scenes moments that defined the week.

As Tobias Harris took questions at his locker following Tuesday’s victory over the Kings, coach Doc Rivers mimicked tossing two-handed chest passes as he walked past the crowd.

“Nine!” the coach hollered with a grin, referencing Harris’ season-high assist total that night.

Rivers is a good person to impress, considering that he amassed 4,889 assists during his playing career. Harris’ total reflected an evolution in his game — and a willingness to adapt to whatever role the Sixers have needed while dealing with various injuries so far this season.

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When asked if Harris had this kind of passing ability when they were both with the Los Angeles Clippers, Rivers answered with an emphatic “no.”

“He was a scorer,” Rivers said. “That’s what you wanted him to be; adding that to your game is big for him, though. ...

“[He’s] just seeing the game, slowing the game down for him. … He’s becoming a better passer each year, with the spacing, where guys are. … He’s starting to see it.”

Rivers revealed less-than-ideal news earlier this week about Tyrese Maxey, who is now expected to miss at least a couple of more weeks with a fractured foot he suffered Nov. 18. That is longer than the originally projected timeline of three to four weeks.

Still, this extended period of time at home has allowed Maxey to be immersed with the team — and perhaps start a new ritual.

Since Maxey does not need to shower after games, he is now one of the first players to leave the locker room. But not before he goes around the entire room, shaking each teammate’s hand.

“Same guy,” reserve big man Montrezl Harrell said when asked about Maxey’s mindset. “Comes in and smiles every day.”

An initial glance at Harris following Thursday’s practice could have made one think the standout forward was wearing sunglasses while shooting.

Not exactly. The special glasses use various blinking settings to simulate ways a defender could obstruct his vision. Harris told The Inquirer he started using the tool last year, when he noticed he was either rushing or hesitating on catch-and-shoot opportunities because he was anticipating a defender’s close-out.

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More technology was at work on the court in front of Harris. As Niang went through his routine around the three-point arc, a big-screen monitor was cued up with the shot-tracking program Noah. It tabulates every area of the rim’s “splash zone,” including the ball’s arc, depth, and left-to-right location.

Niang made 39 of his 69 three-point attempts during the session, including 54% “in the zone.” He acknowledged he has mixed feelings about the tool, but understands the purpose.

“I’m not really a big numbers guy,” said Niang, a career 40.7% three-point shooter. “I’m more of a feel [guy], so sometimes it will drive me nuts. If you see it says ‘perfect shot,’ I’ll start aiming and try to shoot a perfect shot, and I end up missing more than I end up making.

“So it kind of bothers me, but it’s helpful.”

As assistant Sam Cassell passed by Jaden Springer’s locker before Tuesday’s win against the Kings, he delivered a playfully simple yet poignant (or pungent?) message to the second-year guard.

“You stink, man,” Cassell joked.

“I’ve been working out!” Springer responded, referencing the pregame session he had just completed.

“Take a shower!” Cassell answered.

This was another week of Springer shuttling back and forth between the Sixers and G League’s Delaware Blue Coats, which he acknowledged can be difficult at times. He was not with the Sixers on Friday, instead scoring 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting in the Blue Coats’ win against the Westchester Knicks in Bridgeport, Conn.

By Saturday morning, Springer had already been recalled by the Sixers.

Former NBA journeyman Luc Mbah a Moute popped into the Sixers’ locker room before Friday’s game, swinging through the coaches’ offices, training room, and player area.

Mbah a Moute’s influence on Embiid, a fellow Cameroonian who spent the 2014-15 season with the Sixers, has been well-documented. Embiid reiterated after Friday’s game that without Mbah a Moute he would “probably be playing volleyball somewhere in Europe.”

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Tucker’s face also lit up when he spotted Mbah a Moute. They were teammates in Houston during the 2017-18 season.

Before Tuesday’s win over the Kings, Rivers spent a little more than nine minutes with reporters for his customary pregame news conference.

Then he spent nearly 13 minutes taking questions from about 30 local children negatively impacted by the criminal justice system. They visited the Eagles and Sixers as part of an event hosted by rapper Meek Mill, Fanatics owner (and former Sixers minority owner) Michael Rubin, and REFORM Alliance.

“I want you guys to understand you guys deserve as much joy as everybody else,” Rivers told the group. “We understand what you’re going through, what you’ve been through. But you have the right to happiness and to smile and to do everything you want in life. …

“There’s people in your corner. We’re going to fight for you, fight for your families, to make that sure one of you may be sitting here one day giving the same speech.”

Here is a sampling of Rivers’ answers on wide range of topics:

On the most rewarding part of coaching: “I’m going to set winning aside. It’s touching people. I get calls weekly from my ex-players, wanting advice or just to talk. … It’s just really rewarding seeing growth from young people.”

On what keeps him motivated: “My pursuit for perfection. I want to win. I want to be the winner. There’s a big difference between winning and being a winner. You guys understand what I’m saying? You can win a lot of games. You can win a lot of things. But when you’re the winner, that means you’re No. 1. You’re on top. I’ve been there before, and I want to get back, and that’s what drives me every day.”

On the thing he spends the most time on as a coach: “I would say watching a lot of film. Way too much film. That’s the untold work. But as far as with our players, just trying to get them organized and play together. I tell you, when you can get a group of guys that play together, you can become a pretty powerful team.”

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On how he dealt with doubters: “There’s going to be some down points. There’s going to be some lonely times. And there’s going to be some times when you’re doing well. That’s the most dangerous time, because that’s when you want to just relax, and you can’t. You’ve got to keep pushing.”

On how to deal with losses: “The first thing you realize is no one is losing on purpose. … The second part of that is try to point out what we did to lose and what we can do to win — and try to do it in a positive way to give them confidence. Confidence is so important in life, so that’s my job is to teach and build confidence at the same time.”

On dealing with adversity: “The human life is not a game of perfect. You’re going to make mistakes. But you also have to be self-critical and honest [with] yourself. And then the last part is keep running the race. That’s the advice that my dad gave me when I was a child, and I’ll share that with you. He told me that, whatever you do, finish the race. But during the race, you’re going to have obstacles. You’re going to run into hurdles. You’re going to fall down. But the race is not over. Just keep running. If you keep running, good things will happen.”