Seriously, no words.
But because this space is what it is, I will try to articulate some thoughts following an absolutely mindnumbingly awful choke job of a 109-106 loss to the Atlanta Hawks in game 5.
Here we go.
--26 points. That was the lead the Sixers held in the third quarter. Hell, they were up by 18 going into the fourth. This stat has been regurgitated ad nauseum y sports media, but the Sixers were 165-0 over the last 25 seasons in any game in which they held a 25+ point advantage. Throw that unblemished record out the window. The Hawks entered halftime with 40 points. in the fourth quarter alone, they scored 40. They outscored the Sixers 53-25 over the last 16 minutes of the game. I could go further with these numbers. The 72.7% the Hawks shot from the field in the fourth quarter. The 99.6% chance the Sixers had of winning in the third. The 15-2 game ending run the hawks went on over the final 4:23. I'm going to stop though.
--Some numbers on Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris--two guys on max contracts, by the way--shield your eyes: Harris scored 4 points on 2-for-11 shooting in 38 minutes; Simmons attempted 4 shots all game in 38+ minutes and went 4-for-14 from the free throw line; they combined for 2 points on five shots in the second half, a half in which they were -16 and -21 respectively. What? How? Why?
--Embiid, for the second game in a row, fell off in the second half. Heading into the break, he had 24 and 10 and was a +24. After it, he scored 13 points on 3-for-9 shooting, was a -14, and even bricked a pair of free throws when the Sixers still had a fighting chance down the stretch of the game. Whether it's because he's asked to do so much heavy lifting he's burning himself out, or if his injury is just acting up more with wear and tear as the game is going on, he's clearly deteriorating as the game is going on. And if he continues to get the lack of support he has, they might as well book vacations now. Seth Curry is absolved here though--36 points in this one, and scintillating shooting all playoffs (57.7/47.8/80.0). He is doing everything he is capable of and them some. Just thought I had room for a fleck of positivity here.
--I am not a superstitious sports fan, but if ever there was one that I might consider buying stock in, its the Doc Rivers curse. He hasn't made it past the second round since the 2011-2012 season, and his teams have been responsible for some of the biggest collapses in NBA playoff history. I think we all were happy with the change from Brett Brown to Rivers. The latter's name carries a lot of weight, and he has guided a team to a title. But I also think Rivers status as a great guy--and to be clear, Rivers the person is unimpeachable--clouded our judgment on him as a coach. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if this was the only year he got here if this ends badly.
--The bench was an absolute disaster. 13 points on 14 shots, every single member of the second unit an on-court negative. The starters were terrible late in the game, absolutely. But the bench couldn't even remotely keep the score relatively stable. THis is getting ugly. My mood is destroyed. I'm done.
What's Next?
What could be an unexpectedly long offseason is starting the Sixers in the face if they drop game 6 in Atlanta on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. How did it come to this?