‘It’s the unity of the talk’: Why improving defensive communication is critical to Sixers’ early season

As Tyrese Maxey guarded Marcus Smart well above the top of the key during the first half’s final seconds of the 76ers’ opener at the Boston Celtics, Jayson Tatum came up to set a ball screen. Instead of switching, Maxey tried to follow Smart to his left and reached in for the foul — then immediately turned to P.J. Tucker with his arms raised in confusion.

Maxey had heard a different call from Tucker than what the Sixers had used last season to signal a switch. During the break in play for Smart to shoot free throws, Tucker clarified that he wanted Maxey to stay close to the ballhandler, then be ready to switch on contact.

“It was no confrontation,” Maxey said. “It was a conversation between two competitive guys.”

That is an example of why “communication” has arguably been the Sixers’ most common buzzword when asked which elements remain the most work-in-progress less than 10 games into the season. They have altered some defensive schemes to cater to personnel featuring four new rotation players, and proper execution requires the Sixers who are more quiet by nature to speak up with confidence.

“Just like the classroom, you don’t talk unless you actually have the answer,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We’re trying to give them the answer, so they’ll talk more.”

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The numbers and the eye test illustrate the Sixers’ early defensive struggles, along with their inconsistencies on that end of the floor during the past week.

They ranked in the bottom 10 in the NBA in efficiency during their first five games, with noticeable instances when players were caught out of position, tangled up or not receiving necessary help. Then, they were third in the league with 105.8 points allowed per 100 possessions over their three-game winning streak. They dipped again in Wednesday night’s loss to the Washington Wizards, allowing 121 points on 57.7% shooting while trying to deploy a switch-heavy approach without All-NBA center Joel Embiid to match up against the 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis.

Overall, though, Rivers believes improved defensive talent should allow the Sixers (4-5) to utilize more aggressive tactics such as trapping and closing out on long-range shooters. Trust — and voice — are necessary for those concepts to work.

Reserve forward Paul Reed references the LEO acronym — as in “loud, early and often” — from his college career at DePaul when describing how the Sixers should communicate. But even for defensive dynamos such as Matisse Thybulle, talking consistently is not natural.

Sometimes, players are so focused on the responsibility directly in front of them during a fast-moving game that they forget to verbalize their next move or what could assist them or a teammate, reserve forward Montrezl Harrell said. Perimeter pest De’Anthony Melton, who entering Wednesday was tied for ninth in the NBA with two steals per game, has to remind himself that his new teammates don’t yet know all of his tendencies. One of the coaching staff’s priorities has been providing clarity about roles, based on strengths and weaknesses individually and while playing with various lineups.

“A lot of people don’t talk because they don’t know what they’re supposed to do, so they’re tongue-tied or they don’t want to say the wrong thing,” Thybulle said. “But if you’re confident in that you know your rotations, you know reads, you can say something. It’s just owning your stuff and being able to know it well enough to communicate clearly to something else. …

“If the coaches are super clear on what they want us to do, then there’s less margin of error for us. You don’t have an excuse.”

Added Melton: “Once we start talking more, it will start to get contagious. You realize how effective it can be.”

Tucker, the 37-year-old veteran known for his defensive versatility, is one Sixer tasked with fostering that communicative environment.

Using his voice has been a staple since Tucker’s college career at Texas, where then-coach Rick Barnes ran drills focused on talking and expected even more from Tucker as the team’s leader. The Sixers immediately felt that presence, when Rivers shared during a training camp practice that he could hear Tucker on the opposite side of the gym more than the players on the court on which he was standing.

“It’s the unity of the talk,” Tucker said. “If you’re talking the same way, you know what you’re talking about, we’re executing. I know you’re there. I know you’ve got my back. It’s bigger than just the Xs and Os. … It’s loud in arenas. Guys are tired and winded. You’ve got to be able to communicate.

“These guys are grown men now … so just convince them to do enough to help our team win. That’s it.”

Yet that mixup with Maxey in the season opener illustrates that even Tucker is adjusting.

Though he has played for six NBA teams (plus five seasons in Europe), varying terminology can make it feel like he and a new teammate “speak different languages.” A coverage designed to force a ballhandler to the baseline in a side pick and roll, for example, can be called “ice” or “blue.” Thybulle added that Tucker is so savvy that he sometimes instinctually makes reads that are not part of the defensive scouting report, but effective in the moment.

“Learning how he does that to be able to play off of and complement him, a lot of that comes from just talking,” Thybulle said. “Instead of just being silently upset about it, being like ‘Bro, what are you doing?’ Then he can just explain it, and you’re like ‘Ohhh …’”

Another recent in-game moment between Thybulle and an (unnamed) teammate also epitomized how communication yields progress.

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During Monday’s win at Washington, the Wizard that Thybulle was guarding came off a pindown screen, leading to confusion between him and the Sixer guarding the screener. The next time the Wizards ran that same play, however, Thybulle described it as a “non-problem.”

Because, shortly after the snafu, the two Sixers convened for a quick discussion. They determined they should switch. And they executed.

“It’s one thing when no one’s [talking],” Thybulle said, “because then you’re like, ‘[Shoot], I’m not going to do it. No one else is trying to help me out.’ But if everyone’s is doing it, you’re like, ‘OK, I better get on board.’”