76ers: 3 improvements Philadelphia needs to make for Game 2 vs. Hawks

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 06: Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers directs teammates during the first quarter against the Atlanta Hawks during Game One of the Eastern Conference second round series at Wells Fargo Center on June 06, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images) /

2 of 3

Credit: Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images /

2. The 76ers’ bench has to step up

In Game 1, from less than a minute to go in the first quarter to nearly two minutes into the second, with Dwight Howard, Tyrese Maxey, Furkan Kormaz, George Hill and Matisse Thybulle on the floor as a full five-man second unit, what was already an 11-point deficit for Philadelphia grew to 20. That brief 2:37 stretch put the game out of reach.

All five of the aforementioned reserves posted a -9 plus/minus or worse in Game 1. Three of them, Hill, Kormaz and Howard, played less 11 minutes or less and were a combined -44.

Four of the 76ers’ five starters, including a banged up Embiid, played at least 36 minutes in Game 1. As long as everyone is healthy, the 76ers don’t need a ton of minutes from their reserves. But in the minutes those guys do get, even staggered with a couple starters on the floor, they have to be efficient and effective in a capacity that fits their game. That may mean making a shot, grabbing a rebound, taking on a tough defensive matchup or just not making a bad mental mistake.

The 76ers won’t beat the Hawks in Game 2, or the series, strictly on the back of better bench play. But the way those guys looked as a unit in Game 1 can lose them games in the series, in what promises to be some narrow margins. Coach Doc Rivers has to find the right mix from the start in Game 2.