Sixers-Hawks Game 7: Live updates, analysis as Trae Young, Joel Embiid battle for a chance to face Bucks (2024)

Summary

To rest or not to rest?

Doc Rivers' new rotations, which saw Joel Embiid return to the court with two minutes left in the third quarter, mean Rivers will be left trying to decide whether Embiid will play the final 14 minutes and change without coming off the floor, or whether he'll try to sneak a few minutes of rest midway through the fourth quarter of a do-or-die game. Embiid already hasn't had a lot of energy late in games, and while a Game 7 would naturally lead you to play Embiid as many minutes as necessary, you wonder how much doing so would impact his effectiveness.

Don't forget about him...

Their own worst enemy

I find these Sixers incredibly frustrating. Several defensive stops -- good rotations behind Joel Embiid to take away the lob to Clint Capela -- lead to a fastbreak layup for Furkan Korkmaz then a nice dribble handoff between Ben Simmons and Korkmaz leading to a lob dump. And then Tobias Harris misses a layup on the break which would have given them a two-point lead. Being unable to get out of their own way for long stretches has been a consistent theme for Philly since halftime of Game 4, and it's continuing this evening as demonstrated by already having 12 turnovers.

Stat of the half

Big stat for me is that Philly only has five attempts in the restricted area so far, the same number as do the Hawks. Joel Embiid is also 4-for-4 on other shots in the paint which largely represents successfully getting the ball inside. But in Game 7 of a series where dominating the paint was supposed to be one of the Sixers major advantages, they'll need to improve this in the second half.

More of the same concerns from Sixers

The Sixers trail by two at the half for the same reason they lost Games 4 and 5: Their offense is letting them down in a big way, specifically in halfcourt situations. In that first half, we some of the reasons why they struggle to score. There were stagnant possessions, a reliance on Seth Curry to be much more than the shooter he has been throughout his career and minutes where Ben Simmons and Dwight Howard share the floor at the same time and the spacing is limited.

Hawks fortunate to be up at the half

How much longer for Korkmaz?

With Furkan Kokmaz not making shots and seemingly getting plastered whenever Atlanta runs his man off a ballscreen, wondering how much more the Sixers will go with him for the rest of this one.

Interesting pattern from Doc Rivers, Sixers

Rotation watch

After Game 7 Rotation Watch was in full effect last night, doesn't look like we're going to have the same heavy minutes concentration tonight as both coaches are subbing liberally, with the exception of Trae Young and Tobias Harris playing the entire first quarter.

Hawks miss an opportunity?

It feels like the Hawks missed an early opportunity to take advantage of the non-Embiid minutes. The Hawks only scored four points while Embiid sat and Dwight Howard, who's been a massive negative in this series, on the floor. Gallinari, who Seth just mentioned, was one of the reasons why the Hawks couldn't capitalize. He put up three ill-advised shots with both Trae Young and Kevin Huerter on the floor.

The Gallinari effect

One of the worries when the Hawks signed Danilo Gallinari was whether he would become unplayable later in the playoffs due to his defensive limitations. Instead, he has had a very solid series, averaging 14.3 points per game while shooting 44.4% from 3 entering tonight, with the Hawks outscoring the Sixers by 24 with him in the game. One of the knock-on effects of Ben Simmons offensive struggles is that Gallo has had a place to hide as he has shared duties for guarding Simmons alongside Bogdan Bogdanovic and John Collins. The Sixers have already tried to exploit that matchup a few times tonight, but not had much joy.

Maxey a fan favorite

Rookie Tyrese Maxey's rise from out of the rotation earlier this series to 6th man in a decisive Game 7 has been swift, but well-deserved. Maxey was a fan favorite for his scoring prowess and no-fear attitude long before his 16 points in Game 6 saved the Sixers' season, but he got a near standing ovation when he checked into the game midway through the first quarter and the Sixers up 15-13 early.

Bogdanovic watch

Bogdan Bogdanovic left game 6 with right knee soreness and was spotted during pre-game warm-ups tonight with a sleeve covering it as he worked with the Hawks' head trainer. Kevin Huerter intimated on Friday how Bogdanovic has dealt with some lingering injury all series. That could explain him shooting 30 percent from 3 in this series after shooting 44 percent on 7.6 attempts per game during the regular season. For the Hawks to have a strong chance of upsetting the Sixers, they need someone outside of Trae Young to step up. If fully healthy, Bogdanovic would have been the pick to be that No. 2 option. If they can get even a slightly better version of what we've seen, it would go a long way for Atlanta.

Simmons ready for a big Game 7?

When I started watching Ben Simmons warm up, he drilled eight free throws in a row. Even for a shot that doesn’t have require facing any defense, doing it under the pressure of a game setting is far different than warmups. Simmons admitted that his historically bad postseason free-throw shooting (34 percent through 11 games) is “definitely, I think mental.” And as much as the free throws are a problem, the bigger issue is how uninvolved it makes Simmons on the offensive end. His usage rate this series is lower than backup center Dwight Howard’s. It’s not impossible for the Sixers to take Game 7 with Simmons as a relative bystander, but a more engaged performance from him would provide the Sixers a massive lift.

While we wait... some pregame reading