Sixers-Blazers takeaways: Pat Bev’s leadership; Tobias Harris needs time to bounce back; poor effort

PORTLAND, Ore. — Patrick Beverley’s leadership might his most underrated attribute.

It’s going to take Tobias Harris a few games to bounce back from the flu. And the 76ers need to play with better effort and execution regardless of their opponent.

Those three things stood out in Monday’s 130-104 loss to the lowly Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center.

The Sixers, who were without standouts Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, dropped to 29-16.

Embiid, the reigning league MVP, is undoubtedly the Sixers’ best player. Maxey is their most electrifying one. But when it comes to leadership, Beverley has a stranglehold on that category.

“It’s not something I just woke up with,” Beverley said. “It’s something I had to learn how to be a good leader. But the teams that kind of let me do my thing and kind of lead have been great. The teams that kind of don’t want me to do too much because my demeanor is very different than a lot of people, it’s kind of hard to lead that way.”

In Philly, Beverley and coach Nick Nurse appear to rely heavily on each other. They sort of keep each other under control in certain situations.

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But Monday was the latest example of Beverly being an extension of the coaching staff on the floor.

He got on teammates when needed. Beverley also instructed them where they needed to be on the floor. And he was there to pick them up after a bad play.

“I just try to be the leader that I’ve always wanted,” Beverley said. “I just try to be the vet that I always wanted growing up. So that’s been my whole thing.”

Harris shared during shootaround that he wasn’t completely over the flu. He said he felt bad. But the power forward wanted to help his teammates, and knew that playing wouldn’t make his illness worse.

But he had a tough time making shots, finishing with nine points on 3-for-9 shooting. He only made 1 of 7 shots while scoring four points in the first half.

“I’m still just getting back physically from being sick,” he said. “For me, I’m out there playing. That’s what I can do, I can control. Anything outside of that, I’ll see how I feel and be ready for the next game.

“ … I’m still recovering. It is what it is. I’m glad that I got out there to see how I feel.”

The Sixers’ effort could have been better against the Blazers (14-33).

They should not have been blown out by Portland even without Embiid and Maxey. This was the same team that came close to defeating the Denver Nuggets on Saturday minus Embiid, Maxey and Harris.

It’s like they went through the motions, thinking all they had to do was just show up against the Western Conference’s second-worst team.

But Portland broke the game wide open with a 19-4 third-quarter run to take a commanding 80-63 lead. That was the game.

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“It was,” Nico Batum said. “It was nothing special, though. It was effort.”

Portland had a 21-13 advantage in second chance points on a night they led by as many as 31 points.

“I mean when you are in the NBA, you are in the NBA,” Batum said of the Blazers having capable players. “If you are NBA players, you’re good players. So you can’t relax.

“I don’t say we were relaxed because we played the Nuggets and then we played the Blazers the next game. But we are all pros. We have to be serious every night. Regardless of who’s on the floor, they’re all pros.”