The Philadelphia 76ers have followed through on the hype they built over the summer so far in the 2017-18 NBA season. Most of the credit has rightfully gone to their budding superstars in big man Joel Embiid and point forward Ben Simmons.
However, not only does the Sixers young core look every part of a future elite team, but they have already begun to mesh extremely well en route to their 11-7 start to the year. According to Rich Hofmann of The Athletic, head coach Brett Brown credits their early success to their willingness to share the ball:
“It’s the single thing in my opinion that can erode a locker room, erode sort of the fabric of a team,” Brown said. “Because it creeps into defense as much as it is blatant in offense. When you don’t share the ball, it’s a feeling that we all feel. In the locker room, they all play the game, they feel it deeper than we do.”
Often times with star-studded teams, the primary concern always seems to be fixed on how the existing personnel is going to give everyone their share of touches. However, this Sixers team has had no problem moving the ball around as they try to establish each other's roles early on.
Of course, having players like Simmons and Embiid helps speed up this process, but with dangerous three-point shooters like J.J. Redick and Robert Covington, it gets much easier.
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