Under-manned Sixers too slow, too small in loss to Pacers

The short-handed Sixers failed to defend in transition or hold ground in the paint as the Pacers sent them to another loss.

Here's what I saw.

Likes

- Adem Bona was far and away the best thing Philadelphia had going in the first half. He still has a ways to go on defense, averaging more than six fouls per 36 minutes. That can't all be hung on him. Some of those are moving screens, which the ball-handler is responsible for but the screener is punished for. Nonetheless, he's quite raw. But, he's shown quite a bit of promise on offense. The best thing he does and did in this game was go up with ferocity at the rim.

Unlike Andre Drummond, who will leave some things to doubt at the rim, defenses actively get out of the way when they see Bona charging through space. He threw down three ferocious dunks in the first half, and each originated from a slightly different scenario. He caught a short roll pass from Ricky Council IV and attacked a vacant driving lane. Bona lurked patiently and plunged hard to the rim for a throw-down off a dump-off pass. The best of all was the middle dunk. He faked a DHO and essentially created dribble penetration for himself on a loop, making Indiana think he was going to hand the ball off before exploding out of it for a drive and flush.

He doesn't make slick passes that would elicit belief that he sees the floor. But, you can see he's learning how to process defenses in his mind. Decisions like that one lead the highlight reel for his developmental arc in year one.

- Tyrese Maxey led all scorers at halftime, so that's worthy of a spotlight. I thought he did a nice job of dictating pace in the halfcourt. I counted only one miss at the rim caused by him going too fast. He changed speeds coming around screens, patiently waited for the driving crease to open out of the action and then exploded to the rim for crafty finishes against rim-protectors. Really efficient first half for Maxey despite Andrew Nembhard practically sticking to him.

Dislikes

- Drummond called for a post-up isolation near the block early in the game, spun into a drop step for a left-handed finish and airballed it. The Sixers' season in a nutshell.

- You could say the Sixers' urgency in transition matches their urgency in this regular season. It's absolutely infuriating because of how fundamental the issues are. This team consistently struggles to pick up assignments as they come running down the floor, allowing players like Aaron Nesmith to step into open threes. If they're not picking up assignments, they're not seeing the fast break lanes as the opposition picks up its pace, allowing players like Bennedict Mathurin to sneak behind them as he fills the lane for uncontested lob dunks.

When it's been a season-long problem, it's part of your identity. They simply do not execute the basics of transition defense. The lineups do not make a concerted effort to get back. They do not know where they're supposed to be when they do get back. 

And I can't really blame it all on Nick Nurse, who recently said he's had to drill down on basics more this season than ever before. He should not have to be teaching some of this nonsense at this level. You should know the pillars of transition defense when you show up to an NBA training camp. Stop the basketball, stay wide to take away the lanes. Remember when you were a kid at summer camp doing drills simulating transition basketball and yelling out, "I got man" or "I got first pass"? Why do you think you were instructed to shout out those phrases? That's how basic this is. If Nurse is having to teach that, this team was dead on arrival.

It's so bad that the team would be 50 percent more watchable if they just mastered transition defense. That's how badly that part of the game damages them every single night. The scariest thing you can do to the Sixers is advance the ball up the floor quickly.

- Equally maddening is that the Sixers seemingly never identify when they have a transition opportunity. For a team that could use every easy basket available given the amount of talent out with injuries, it's jarring to watch them bring the ball up the floor slowly over and over again. The only time they work quickly is when they generate an open-floor steal.

Spare thoughts

- The Eagles better win on Sunday or it's going to get real dark around here real fast. And that's saying something because the sun is going down at about 4:30 these days.

- If I have to hear or watch another "Demand Rand" commercial, I'm going to demand a raise to do this job. Absolutely brutal piece of marketing.

The Sixers (15-25) will visit the Milwaukee Bucks (23-17) on Sunday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m., Eastern time. You can watch the game on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

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