With Joel Embiid out, Ben Simmons, Sixers have strong showing against Thunder

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They don’t count in the standings, but through two scrimmages the Sixers have looked dominant at times.

The Sixers lost to the Thunder, 102-97, at HP Field House in Disney World Sunday afternoon, but the final score was not indicative of how the game went. The Sixers' lead was as large as 24 before most of their regulars were done for the day.

Joel Embiid missed Sunday’s scrimmage with discomfort in his right calf (see story). He’s considered day-to-day and will be re-evaluated Monday. Al Horford started in his place.

The Sixers will play their third and final scrimmage Tuesday night against the Dallas Mavericks (8:30 p.m./NBCSP).

Here are observations from the game.

Defense leading the way

After a couple early hiccups against the Thunder’s dangerous pick-and-roll ball handlers in Chris Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Sixers really settled in defensively. Pick-and-roll defense has been a sore spot at times for the Sixers, but they were solid in that regard Sunday.

Horford seemed to take control on the defensive end. After admitting he wasn’t where he wanted to be physically at times this season, Horford displayed the strong, quick feet he’d been known for as a big throughout his career. He also appeared to be communicating well with the team’s perimeter defenders.

In the first two scrimmages, the Sixers are making a concerted effort to turn teams over and get out and run. While Oklahoma City only committed eight turnovers in the first half, the Thunder shot just 36.7 percent from the field before halftime.

Josh Richardson and Matisse Thybulle were both excellent defensively in helping contain Paul, Gilgeous-Alexander and Dennis Schroder. Richardson had four steals and two blocks while Thybulle had two steals and a block.

Simmons keeps it going

Brett Brown has been telling us how free and confident Ben Simmons has looked during practices in Disney World. Through two scrimmages, it appears Simmons has carried that over.

While he didn’t take any threes, Simmons was everywhere in this one. He was on triple-double watch in the first half with six points, seven assists and seven rebounds. With Embiid out, we knew the Sixers were going to play fast. Though Simmons was still playing the four, he took the ball off the rim and looked for transition opportunities.

In the third quarter, Simmons came alive as a scorer, pouring in eight points in the period. The Sixers used Simmons more as a screener and roller and the team was aggressively hunting mismatches.

Simmons finished with 14 points (5 of 10 shooting), 11 rebounds and nine assists. He also did well getting to the line, going 4 of 7. He did commit five turnovers, but he was a team-high plus-21.

Shots fired

For the second straight game, the Sixers shot the ball very well. They started 10 of 23 (43.5 percent) in the first half. At times, the ball movement was very good, especially among the starters. The Sixers had 27 assists on 36 made field goals. 

Horford (4 of 5), Shake Milton (3 of 6) and Alec Burks (3 of 7) led the way shooting from three. Horford was strong overall with 13 points, nine rebounds and three assists.

Rotation battle

Embiid’s absence made the rotation a little funky. At one point a lineup of Shake Milton with four reserves — Matisse Thybulle, Furkan Korkmaz, Glenn Robinson III and Norvell Pelle — took the floor. Offensively, it was rough. With that said, Robinson and Pelle stood out.

Unfortunately, Robinson was forced to leave the game with a hip pointer. The sixth-year pro looked good through two scrimmages, providing energy and making shots. With the Sixers’ glut of wings, Robinson was acquitting himself well in his fight for minutes.

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