With a clean slate in Las Vegas, the Sixers opened their second summer league of 2024 on a winning note.
Following a 1-2 stay in Salt Lake City, the Sixers notched a 94-81 victory Saturday night over the Pistons.
Ricky Council IV led them with a 24-point, six-rebound outing. No. 5 overall pick Ron Holland II recorded 15 points and seven rebounds for Detroit.
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The Sixers’ second game in Vegas will be Monday at 8:30 p.m. ET vs. the Trail Blazers. Here are observations on their win Saturday:
Useful reps for McCain off screens
The Sixers did not have the most encouraging start.
Council let a three-pointer fly on the team’s first possession and air balled it. Jared McCain also came up well short on his first three-point attempt and missed an early contested layup. Detroit jumped out to a 9-2 lead.
NBA
Jeff Dowtin Jr. (18 points, eight assists, five rebounds) remained the Sixers’ main point guard, though McCain brought the ball forward a decent amount in the open floor. He got on the board with a slick left-to-right crossover and driving layup.
While it hasn’t corresponded with incredible numbers, McCain’s displayed good attacking instincts and skills in transition during summer league. In the second quarter, he pushed the ball ahead, used a drag screen, and drained a pull-up three.
It will be intriguing to see what strides McCain can make this year as a movement shooter. The Sixers called an after-timeout play for him late in the second quarter, having the 20-year-old curl off of two down screens and receive a pass from Dowtin. McCain’s mid-range jumper went in and out, but the reps navigating around screens should absolutely be helpful for him.
He’s clearly capable of operating off on-ball screens, too. McCain made one of the night’s best plays early in the third quarter when he ran a pick-and-roll with Adem Bona, quickly faked a pass, and kept on driving for a lefty layup.
McCain's jump shots still aren't dropping the way they usually do. He had 11 points on 4-for-14 shooting, six rebounds and two steals.
Where Bona’s at offensively
Bona (eight points, seven rebounds, five blocks) scored his first Vegas points on a put-back slam.
On the Sixers’ next possession, Bona set a solid pick for Dowtin followed by a “Gortat screen” — sealing his man while also clearing out space for Dowtin’s driving bucket à la Marcin Gortat.
Refining his pick-and-roll game will be a huge part of Bona’s offensive development. Those sorts of sequences in which he reads the play as it unfolds will be an important aspect.
Bona has obvious room for improvement overall offensively. He had one rough turnover Saturday when he drove from the left side of the floor, pivoted back, and tossed a pass to no one. His sprint down the floor couldn’t prevent a Daniss Jenkins dunk.
Defensively, Bona was again hungry to block anything he could and quite effective. He’s up to 14 rejections through four summer league outings.
Council and Aluma key in the fourth
As was the case in Salt Lake City, Council wasn’t bashful about putting up threes.
He had an off night from long range, going 1 for 6 beyond the arc, but Council regularly slashed into the paint and looked to create fouls. He went 9 for 9 at the free throw line.
Against any competition, foul drawing appears to be one of the top skills in Council’s game. For an NBA role player whose minutes likely won’t be massive at all on most nights next season, it’s a nice way that he can contribute. And it also means that Council’s value hinges a little less on whether his jumpers are falling.
Teams don’t love to see players waste possessions in search of fouls, but it’s typically fair enough when Council plows into the lane and hopes to hear a whistle. He often gets what he’s seeking.
Council threw down a few more dunks, too.
Keve Aluma continued to give the Sixers efficient, impressive production behind Bona. Sixers summer league head coach Matt Brase opened the fourth quarter with Bona and Aluma together in the frontcourt.
The 25-year-old Aluma posted 19 points on 8-for-10 shooting and eight rebounds. He closed the game out and was excellent in crunch time.
Shortly after sinking a three, Aluma pump faked and drove to the rim for an and-one layup. Great work by a player who spent last season in South Korea.