The winless Sixers are coming up empty on three-pointers so far this season
The Sixers are near the bottom of the NBA in three-pointers per game. They hit only 10 of 31 from deep in Saturday's upset loss to the Spurs.
Doc Rivers knows poor statistics in one area can be the symptom of a bigger problem.
After his 76ers lost to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, the coach was asked if his team needed to produce more three-pointers.
The Sixers (0-3) are tied for 25th in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans in three-pointers made (9.3 per game). They also rank 25th in three-point percentage (.315) and are tied with the Charlotte Hornets for 23rd in attempts (29.7).
“I want to see more three-pointers,” said Rivers, whose squad is also tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for 28th in scoring (103.3). “I want to see more open court. I want to see more guys get into the paint. And that’s why you don’t get three-pointers right now.
“We are not pushing the ball up the floor. We are not getting enough stops in a row to do anything like that.”
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So the Sixers definitely need to make three-pointers. That was a point of emphasis during Friday’s film session, where players were instructed to focus on layups or threes.
Of the Sixers’ 84 shots in the 114-105 loss to the Spurs, they made 10 of 31 three-pointers. But the Sixers struggled mightily with the game on the line. They shot 4 of 14 in the second half, including going 1-for-6 in the fourth quarter.
They’ll try to make improvements Monday night at home against the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers (1-2) picked up their first victory Saturday night against the Detroit Pistons. Indiana is ranked 29th in the league in opponent’s three-point percentage (.442).
So this should be the perfect opportunity for the Sixers to build confidence. But folks said the same thing before they faced the tanking Spurs. The Sixers were 14-point favorites at home after losses to the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks.
» READ MORE: Sixers-Spurs takeaways: Sixers must work on ‘everything,’ but ‘lack of defensive effort’ is the Achilles’ heel.
“It’s almost like we played these first two games hard, competed, and then felt like, ‘OK, now we can go win some games,’” Rivers said. “You’ve still got out there [and play hard] during the game.
“[P.J. Tucker] was yelling that after the game. He was right, you know? No one is going to just give you a win. You have to go get it. And you have to do it every night. You can’t just pick and choose when we are going to show up right now.”
Georges Niang thinks the Sixers, who are a surprise at last place in the Eastern Conference, can turn things around by devouring the details and continuing to work on the little things.
The keys are “winning in the margins, not giving up offensive rebounds, having each other’s backs on the defensive end, and continuing to trust in the system and the process,” Niang said, “and going through these growing pains.”
The Sixers know three games don’t make a season. In fact, they ended up having a solid campaign after the last time they started 0-3.
The Sixers opened the 2017-18 season with consecutive losses to the Washington Wizards, Celtics, and Toronto Raptors. But the additions of Ersan Ilyasova and Marco Belinelli in the buyout market led to one of their most enjoyable regular-season finishes.
» READ MORE: Sixers fall to 0-3, losing to Spurs despite 40-point effort from Joel Embiid
The Sixers were three games above .500 (28-25) before signing Belinelli on Feb. 12, 2018. Sixteen days later, Ilyasova rejoined a Sixers squad that was 32-27 with 23 games remaining.
Brett Brown’s team went 20-3 down the stretch, including setting an NBA record with 16 straight wins to conclude the regular season. The Sixers’ 52-30 record remains their best mark since going 56-26 in 2000-01.
So there’s a lot of basketball left to be played this season.
“It’s three games,” Niang said. “It’s a long season. Obviously, [Saturday night] doesn’t feel good for anybody. But that can’t stop you from growing and working through what you have to work through to get what you want.
“And we’re going to have to keep sacrificing, keep working, and keep getting better.”